Rejected petition Amend the Sexual Offences Act 2003 so that women can be charged with rape

Amend the The Sexual Offences Act 2003 so that rape isn't defined as: "he intentionally penetrates the vagina, anus or mouth of another person with his penis," as this states that only men can be convicted of rape. It should be gender neutral, and not be male or female specific in any aspect.

More details

The current language of the Act states that only a male can commit rape, meaning that females can, at most, be charged with sexual assault. While the male goes to prison for life, the female is free after 10 years. Rape is rape, whether or not it's a man or woman.

This petition was rejected

Why was this petition rejected?

There’s already a petition about this issue. We cannot accept a new petition when we already have one about a very similar issue.

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You may wish to sign this petition, which calls for similar action: "Change Sexual Offences Act rape definition to include any assault by penetration" https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/745624

We only reject petitions that don’t meet the petition standards.

Date submitted 18 March 2026
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