Sexual Offences Bill poll 3

[lovingboth]

The 'age of consent' will remain at 16 (17 in Northern Ireland for no very good reason), with the existing - and expanded - restriction that someone in a position of care over a 16 or 17 year old cannot be sexual with them. (This was introduced as a sop to the opponents of the equalisation of the gay age of consent.)

An additional clause will make it illegal to pay for sex with any 16 or 17 year old. It is not otherwise illegal to pay for legal sexual activity.

[Poll #119972]

Update: Sandy - any 16 or 17 year old, ie paying for sex with someone who's 16 or 17 will make otherwise legal sex illegal. (It will also be an offence to pay for illegal sex, eg U-16, or with someone U-18 who you have a duty of care for, but that's already illegal..)

Comments

[geminigirl]

Not that all 16 or 17 year olds are ready to have sex, but why should age of consent for sex work be different from age of consent?

why should age of consent for sex work be different from age of consent?

[hamsterine.livejournal.com]

Well, basically because sex work is really quite traumatic. It can fuck people up with regard to sex whatever their level of sexual experience is, but if they have had relatively few non-business sexual experiences, the effect will probably be a lot worse. Sex work is also a health hazard in that if the person does not practice safe sex (even if they try to, accidents happen, and so do asshole clients who don't want to use protection and won't take no for an answer) they risk catching very serious diseases. It could be argued that people who are not yet adults should not be allowed to choose such a dangerous occupation. STDs can of course be transmited through non-business sex, but a prostitute will generally fuck a lot more people than someone who just has sex for fun, so the risk is higher. Even if it wasn't, it is usual for more legal safeguards to be in place around work activities than non-work ones. This seems only proper to me, as it helps protect against an employee being pressured into doing something unsafe by their employer.

I'm not saying I agree with not allowing underage sex workers. I think many of then will continue to work, but be even further outside the law (and so with even less support) than other sex workers. I can understand the reasoning behind it though.