Qantas and Air New Zealand have both confirmed it is their policy not to allow unaccompanied children to sit next to men. But Dunedin-based clinical psychologist Nigel Latta, who has 15 years experience with sex offenders and victims, told NZPA he disagreed entirely with the policy.

"I think it's completely insane. It's a crowded plane. For a start you've got to have someone who's sexually interested in children who just happens by chance to get sat next to an unaccompanied child who then in a small, crowded airplane is going to molest a kid on a flight. "It's insane. It's political correctness and cautiousness gone made." Latta said the policy was sending an "awful" message to society that "all men are pariahs".

He said some women and children were also sexual offenders "so we can't even sit them next to other children. We must sit them by themselves in a wee pen so nobody can get near them". Latta agreed studies of sexual offenders showed somewhere between 70 and 90 percent were male but the airlines' policy would not help protect children.

"The principle is just utterly offensive. It's stupid and there's just no logic behind it. "In 15 years of working with thousands of sexual offenders I've never treated or heard of a man who sexually offended against a child on a plane." It was far more likely to happen on a bus or a train, where people could get on and off for a small fare.

Latta also suspected the airlines' policy would contravene human rights legislation against discriminating on the basis of gender. He said people had to be sensible in protecting children. "Change the sentencing and probation laws if you want to keep kids safer. Let's put a little bit more into the primary prevention stuff."

The National Party's spokesman against political correctness, Wayne Mapp, said the policy was an example of political correctness that had got out of hand. "I think this is a gross over-reaction by the airlines." Air New Zealand spokeswoman Rosie Paul told the Herald they were temporary guardians of unaccompanied children and when possible seated them next to an empty seat.

"Sometimes this isn't possible, so the preference is to seat a female passenger next door to an unaccompanied minor," she said. Children's Commissioner Cindy Kiro commended the airlines for endeavouring to keep children safe.

She did not think it was intended to be a slur against men. Green MP Keith Locke said today he would be writing to the Human Rights Commission asking it to intervene in what he felt was a clear breach of the Human Rights Act. The airline needed to recognise that "men are people too".

"It is prejudicial to presume that men can't be trusted to have contact with children unless they are related to them or are specially trained," Locke said. NZPA