Diolch. 

I listened carefully to what stakeholders and the three committees said during Stage 1 about the importance of ensuring sufficient time is available prior to the change in the law to abolish the defence of reasonable punishment. As a result, I brought forth amendments at Stage 2 to provide certainty around the date for the change in the law and for a period of two years between Royal Assent and commencement. I believe that this remains the most appropriate way to bring in this change. 

This certainty, in terms of the timeline, will allow all our key partners, including the police, social services and the Crown Prosecution Service to plan for changes to guidance, training and data collection and to be able to do it more effectively because they know the exact period of time that they've got. It will also provide a focus for our awareness-raising campaign.