Daily roundup: Emotional abuse, Youth Parliament, and consent age

A survey of police officers has found that more than two-thirds believe emotional cruelty to children should be made illegal. Proposals to close a legislative gap, which means emotional neglect is excluded from the criminal definition of child neglect, will be debated in parliament on Friday. A poll of more than 200 police officers in England and Wales by YouGov found that only five per cent thought the law should remain the same, while seven in 10 supported change; a quarter were unsure, the Independent reports.

Members of the UK Youth Parliament (UKYP) chose lowering the voting age and reviewing the academic curriculum to better prepare young people for life after school as their two priority campaign issues for 2014. Around 300 elected youth parliamentarians discussed five topics during UKYP’s annual debate at the House of Commons on Friday, before voting for their devolved and reserved campaigns for 2014. Speaker of the House John Bercow chaired the debate and praised the young people involved for their enthusiasm.

Britain's three main political parties have rejected a call by a public health official to consider lowering the age of consent to 15. A spokesman for the Prime Minister told the Guardian that the current age of 16 was designed to protect children, a view echoed by the Liberal Democrats and Labour. The three parties were responding to calls by Professor John Ashton, president of the Faculty of Public Health, for a lowering of the age of consent to make it easier for 15-year-olds to seek NHS contraception and sexual health advice.