In respect of people taking photos of kids, I am aware that there is no copyright of images in the UK and the privacy laws are less onerous that in France for instance, however that is not the issue we are talking about here. The very act of taking someones picture like this is unnecessary and aggressive. No one has any right to invade the privacy of an innocent child in that manner and use it as 'evidence' in some crusade.

Some months ago I was in a cafe when a man at the next table sitting wiht his friends thought that my children were 'cute' and proceeded to take their photos. I asked him to stop. He continued I went over and grabbed his camera off him and made a scene. Had it not been a digital camera I would have taken out the film. He was so surprised that he had no time to put up any resistance. Yet he had had ample warning that I didnt like it. He left the cafe shortly afterwards hopefully having learnt his lesson.
There are certain issues that worry parents and taking unwelcome photos is one of them. It isnt wise at all from a safeguarding point of view to let people do this. Its a personal decision for parents but most would probably want to know where they are to end up and the intention behind taking them in the first place.