Back in May I wrote about the law relating to rape in Scotland and how inadequate and out of date it is. Today I write about up and coming developments in this very area of Scots Law as today the Scottish Government published its long awaited Sexual Offences (Scotland) Bill.

Section 1 of this Bill provides a much wider definition of what rape is and means that now both men and women can be raped. Section 1(1) of the Bill defines rape as:

If a person (“A”), with A’s penis—

(a) without another person (“B”) consenting, and
(b) without any reasonable belief that B consents,

penetrates to any extent, either intending to do so or reckless as to whether there is penetration, the vagina, anus or mouth of B then A commits an offence, to be known as the offence of rape.

This is long overdue and this will bring us in line with law in England in relation to the offence of rape. It also establishes the maximum penalty of life imprisonment or a fine or both (schedule 1).

The Bill deals with a lot more and I will blog on the rest of the Bill once I have had a chance to digest it fully.

• Criminal Justice
• Criminal Law
• Politics
• Scots Law