By MARTIN DELGADO, Mail on Sunday

Last updated at 22:00 04 November 2006

British Airways has been accused of treating all men passengers as potential sex offenders after it was revealed it has banned children from sitting next to male strangers - even if their parents are on the same flight.

The bizarre regulation came to light when a nine-year-old girl was moved from her seat next to a 76-year-old passenger and his wife on a flight from Malaga to London.

Instead her mother was told by a stewardess to take the seat next to retired journalist Michael Kemp and his wife Frances, and the girl was moved to the back of the plane.

Mrs Kemp had booked an aisle seat because a bad leg meant she needed extra space. But as the Airbus A320 filled up, she was asked to swap seats with her husband so that she, not he, would be sitting next to the girl.

Mrs Kemp politely declined, explaining to the stewardess that she had asked for an aisle seat

to avoid discomfort during the three-hour flight.

But when Mr Kemp offered to move to the window seat so that the girl could sit between him and his wife, the stewardess said it would still breach the airline's child-welfare regulations.

Mr Kemp, from Kensington, West London, said last night: "The little girl's mother put her in the window seat next to me and then went to her own seat further back.

"When everyone was seated, the stewardess asked my wife if she would sit next to the girl. Frances explained why she couldn't move and I thought I could resolve the problem by moving up and letting the girl sit between us.

"To my amazement, the stewardess said BA had a rule that no unaccompanied child under 16 may be seated next to an adult male stranger - even if there's a woman on the other side.

"The discussion went on for several minutes but she refused to back down and said we could not take off until the problem was sorted out. I heard her muttering to a colleague that everyone would have to disembark.

"She didn't seem embarrassed - just rather irritated that it was taking up so much time.

"The whole thing caused a good deal of inconvenience which could have been avoided if BA had spotted the problem when we booked our tickets."

Leading child protection campaigner Michele Elliot, director of the children's charity Kidscape, said she was astonished by the BA rule.

"It is utterly absurd. It brands all men as potential sex offenders," she said.

"What message does it send out to children - that men are not to be trusted? Women also abuse children. This is just totally lacking in common sense."

The aircraft was operated by GB Airways, a BA franchise partner. A spokesman said: "As a responsible airline with a duty of care to our customers, it is our policy to ensure that, where possible, we do not seat unaccompanied minors next to adult males.

"We apologise if Mr Kemp was offended by our request, but we have to balance the needs of the child with those of the adult.

"The policy is there as a precaution in the best interests of the welfare of young children flying alone."