Conservative Party Leader Helen Houghton
says that every child should be protected from abuse,
exploitation, violence, neglect, and unnecessary medical
intervention.
Referring to the recent case of child
sexual abuse in New Zealand, in which the father of a
five-year-old received a three-year prison sentence after
receiving sentence reductions for pleading guilty, here,
Helen Houghton said, “The sentence for the child is
lifelong.”
The following policy has been developed
with the intent of creating the best possible conditions for
the welfare of every child and supporting parents in all
decisions affecting their children.
Stronger
Protection from Sexual Offending
We
will:
Increase penalties for serious sexual offending
against children.
Ensure repeat child sexual offenders
face significantly longer prison sentences.
Oppose
automatic sentence reductions for the most serious offences
against children.
Improve monitoring of high-risk
offenders after release.
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Strengthen online child
exploitation investigations and resources.
Ensure
victims and their families receive timely counselling and
long-term support.
Protect Children from Medical
Harm
We believe children should be protected from
irreversible medical interventions unless there is clear
evidence of medical necessity.
We
will:
- Restrict elective, irreversible medical
procedures intended to alter a child’s sex characteristics
or reproductive abilities. - Require comprehensive
independent assessment before any significant medical
intervention relating to gender distress. - Ensure
parents or legal guardians are at the forefront in all
decisions,
Require medical practice to follow
high-quality evidence and informed consent
standards.
Establish independent review mechanisms for
complaints involving treatment of minors.
Protect
Childhood from Exploitation
We will:
Increase
penalties for producing or distributing child sexual abuse
material.
Strengthen laws against online
grooming.
Expand education for parents about online
risks.
Safe Schools
We support schools
that:
Maintain safe learning environments.
Take
bullying seriously.
Protect students from harassment
and sexual violence.
Focus on academic achievement
while providing age-appropriate health education, excluding
the focus on sexuality.
Mental Health
Support
We will:
Increase access to qualified
child psychologists alongside the parent, not without
parents in attendance.
Reduce waiting times for youth
mental health services.
Expand support following abuse
or trauma.
Invest in early intervention to prevent
long-term harm.
Family Support
Strong families
are the greatest protection for children.
We
will:
Support parenting education.
Strengthen
early intervention where abuse is identified.
Improve
coordination between schools, health providers, and child
protection agencies.
Prioritise keeping children safe
while respecting the role of loving parents.
Child
Trafficking
We will:
Increase resources to
investigate trafficking.
Strengthen border
cooperation.
Ensure severe penalties for trafficking
or commercial exploitation of children, including Rainbow
themed clothing and accessories, rainbow themed storytelling
and broadcast media aimed at children which are
characteristically sexuality in
context.
