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28th February 2017
10:38am GMT
His comments have sparked fury as critics say it is the first step in accepting paedophilia.
However, Simon Bailey who is the chief constable of Norfolk Constabulary and head of child protection at the National Police Chiefs Council, says that resources are tight and authorities would be better off concentrating on those who pose a physical threat to children.
Speaking to the Times, he said that a dramatic increase in the reporting of sexual abuse has meant that their services have reached "saturation point"
In a view that has horrified many, Mr Bailey believes that some of the lower level offending such as viewing pornographic images of children should be decriminalised and dealt with through counselling and rehabilitation.
He said that we cannot "arrest our way out of the situation". He differentiated between those who go online and use their credit card to direct the abuse of a child in a country like the Philippines who should be "locked up categorically," and those who are not in contact with children but look at "low-level images"
He believes it will free up more officers and intelligence to deal with more serious offenders.
What's your view on the matter? Do you feel like it is a better use of resources or is this opening the floodgates to saying it is ok to view pornographic images of children?
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