Support for 'name and shame' website

Stuart Carnie with his prototype website

Plans to name and shame sex offenders on the internet have been welcomed by the mother of a schoolboy murdered by a paedophile.

The website will be launched this week by an Aberdeen-based campaigner.

It has been condemned by police, childrens' groups and the Scottish Executive, who warn it could do more harm than good.

But Stuart Carnie, of the Freedom for Children movement, has received support from Patsy Simpson.

Her son Scott was murdered three years ago by a known paedophile living anonymously near their home in Aberdeen.

Patsy Simpson: Backing the idea

She said: "It is a good idea. People have got the right to know who is living in their area for the safety of their kids."

Meanwhile, it has emerged that a website listing people convicted of sex crimes has been on the internet for more than two years.

It was set up by an Edinburgh man after three of his daughters were abused in 1996.

Mr Carnie regularly films people in his area who he believes are paedophiles and says what he is doing is not uncommon in the UK.

Danger level

"We believe the public have the right to know what these people are, what level of danger they pose and where they stay so that people in that area can protect their children better," he said.

"Over the coming weeks we will produce lists of names on our website which the public can view."

Anti-paedophile campaigners from the Paulsgrove estate in Portsmouth, Hampshire, attracted media attention when they protested throughout the summer following the death of schoolgirl Sarah Payne.

Sarah Payne's death sparked public anger

The campaigners said there should be tougher sentencing, tagging and compulsory treatment for paedophiles.

They also demanded an international register of all living sex offenders, more powers for police, and counselling and criminal compensation for victims.

But Home Secretary Jack Straw's has so far denied public access to the sex offenders' register.

The prospect of an online naming and shaming campaign has drawn a worried reaction from the police in Scotland and other agencies.

'No quick fix'

Inspector Harry Thorburn, of Grampian Police, said: "This matter poses a big, big problem for society. There is no quick fix solution.

"We have tried to minimise the risks to the public and I think we have successfully done that. This high profile media campaign is a difficult one and I have yet to see evidence of how it has worked."

Alan Miller, a human rights lawyer, said: "I don't believe this will advance anyone's cause - in fact it is a sinister move."

Insp Harry Thorburn: Opposes the website

The charity Action on Child Exploitation also has grave reservations over the website, which it says could do more harm than good.

David Niven said: "It is very dangerous that offenders will be chased underground.

"They will disappear and therefore they are more likely to be able to hurt children if they are not actually being policed and being monitored."

He is calling for a government inquiry into the way sex offenders are monitored.

Ray Wyre, who runs a clinic in England which aims to rehabilitate sex offenders, said the website could find itself facing contempt of court charges if featuring offenders led to the identification of the children who had been their victims.

Vigilante action

The Scottish Executive has also voiced concern about the website.

It said: "It is important we do not hinder the police in their tracking of sex offenders.

"We would caution against name-and-shame campaigns, or vigilante action.

"These can lead to the targeting of innocent people.

"They can also drive offenders underground. We would then lose our ability to track them, putting children at greater risk."