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Proceeding contribution from Earl of Listowel (Crossbench) in the House of Lords on Tuesday, 30 June 2009. It occurred during Debate on bill and Committee of the Whole House (HL) on Coroners and Justice Bill.


Coroners and Justice Bill

I thank the noble and learned Baroness for giving way. My understanding is that the frontal lobes of children mature at about the age of 14, so it would be normal for the frontal lobes of a 13 or 12 year-old to be immature and therefore for those children to be particularly susceptible to impulsive behaviour. If I heard the noble and learned Baroness correctly, she said that, where the development of the frontal lobes was immature, it would be recognised as a mental condition. That probably highlights the difficulty. We are not saying that children who lack development of their frontal lobes have a mental condition but that it is just normal for children of 13 or 12 not to have developed those frontal lobes. We want the courts to be able to take account of that. Perhaps I misunderstood the noble and learned Baroness.


Secondary information

Type
Proceeding contribution
Reference
712 c187 
Session
2008-09
Chamber / Committee
House of Lords chamber
Subjects
Access Children Disclosure of information Accountability Appeals Crime Armed forces Death Crimes of violence Age Certification Coroners Age of criminal responsibility Homicide Mental illness Northern Ireland Mentally disordered offenders Mental capacity Newspaper press Life imprisonment Relatives Sentencing Registration Young people Young offenders Treasure
Legislation
Coroners and Justice Bill 2008-09
Link
View this Proceeding contribution on www.publications.parliament.uk