The Protection of Children and Prevention of Sexual Offences bill was announced to the parliament by the First Minister of Scotland, Jack McConnell, in September 2004.

Following the Sexual Offences Act 2003 which introduced new legislation into England and Wales, there were calls by politicians and the police for similar laws to come into force in Scotland.

[4] There were concerns that the existing legislation made it difficult to prosecute people for child grooming before any sexual abuse had taken place.

[4] Some people suspected of grooming children over the internet for sex abuse had been charged with breach of the peace or lewd and libidinous practises.

Other countries adopting similar laws included Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States.