Sexual Offences Act 2003
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| Long title | An Act to make new provision about sexual offences, their prevention and the protection of children from harm from other sexual acts, and for connected purposes. |
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| Citation | 2003 c 42 |
| Territorial extent | UK (England, Wales, Scotland, N. Ireland) |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 20 November 2003 |
| Commencement | 1 May 2004, except that sections 138 and 141 to 143 came into force on 20 November 2003 |
| Other legislation | |
| Relates to | Sexual Offences (Scotland) Act 2009 |
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Status: Current legislation
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| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Revised text of statute as amended | |
The Sexual Offences Act 2003 (c 42) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.
It replaced older sexual offences laws with more specific and explicit wording. It also created several new offences such as non-consensual voyeurism, assault by penetration, causing a child to watch a sexual act, and penetration of any part of a corpse.
Part I of the Act makes many changes to the sexual crimes laws in England and Wales (and to some extent Northern Ireland), almost completely replacing the Sexual Offences Act 1956.
Rape has been redefined from the Sexual Offences Act 1956 (amended in 1976 and 1994) to read:
A person (A) commits an offence if—
(a) he intentionally penetrates the vagina, anus or mouth of another person (B) with his penis,
(b) B does not consent to the penetration, and
(c) A does not reasonably believe that B consents.
Rape previously did not include penetration of the mouth. The Act also changes the way in which lack of consent may be proved, and section 75 and 76 of the Act list circumstances in which lack of consent may be presumed.
A new offence of assault by penetration is defined as penetration with any object to the anus or vagina.
The Act also now includes provisions against sex tourism. People who travel abroad with the intent to commit sexual offences can have their passports revoked or travel restricted. However, this part of the Act has yet to be enforced by a test case in the UK and has been criticised by numerous high-profile litigants due to its complexities.
Group homosexual sex has been decriminalised, in that Schedule 6 of the 2003 Act caused section 12 of the Sexual Offences Act 1956 to be omitted, removing the offence of homosexual sex "when more than two persons take part or are present".
Part II of the Act also consolidated the provisions of the Sex Offenders Act 1997 on registration of sex offenders and protective orders. These provisions generally apply throughout the United Kingdom.
Section 45(2) changed the definition of "child" in the Protection of Children Act 1978 (which applies to child pornography) from a person under 16 to a person under 18. Section 45 also inserted section 1A of the 1978 Act, and section 160A of the Criminal Justice Act 1988, which create defences which apply where the photograph showed the child alone or with the defendant (but not if it showed any other person), the defendant proves that the photograph was of the child aged 16 or over and that he and the child were married or lived together as partners in an enduring family relationship, and certain other conditions are met.
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