Judges weaken rules on paedophiles

The Court of Appeal has torn up powers which previously allowed judges to ban convicted paedophiles from unfettered access to their families.

They ruled that the “right to a family life” must be taken into account before the “sexual offences prevention orders”, known as SOPOs, are issued.

The ruling, issued after a legal challenge by a group of men convicted of using the internet to view child pornography, significantly weakens the ability of the criminal courts to place restrictions on paedophiles.