Closed petition Raise the legal age of consent for sex to 18 if the other partner is an adult

Closed on 7 June 2023

Instead of the law being over 16 can consent to sex I’d like to raise it to 18 in the specific case of consenting with an adult. Therefore 16/17 year olds can still consent to have sex with each other but a 25 year old sleeping with a 16 y/o Eg an adult sleeping with a child, will be statutory rape

I believe that teenagers can consent to relationships with each other and should be allowed to. I also understand the need for Romeo and Juliet laws. But a lot of predators ranging from 25 to 60 years old take advantage of the morally grey area of sleeping with a 16 year old (a child), claiming it’s still legal so it’s okay. This change would protect young people from predators. There is no valid reason for anyone who is out of their teen years to be with a teenager. The law should reflect that