Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 2000

1 Reduction in age at which certain sexual acts are lawful. U.K.

(1) In the M1 Sexual Offences Act 1956—

(a) in subsections (1A) and (1C) of section 12 (buggery); and

(b) in sub-paragraphs (a) and (b) of paragraph 16 (indecency between men etc.) of Schedule 2 (punishments etc.),

for the word “eighteen” there shall be substituted the word “ sixteen ”.

(2) In the M2 Sexual Offences Act 1967—

(a) in subsections (1) and (6) of section 1 (amendment of law relating to homosexual acts in private), for the word “eighteen” there shall be substituted the word “ sixteen ”; and

(b) in section 8 (restriction on prosecutions), for the word “twenty-one” there shall be substituted the word “ sixteen ”.

(3) In section 13 of the M3 Criminal Law (Consolidation) (Scotland) Act 1995 (homosexual offences)—

(a) in subsections (1) and (5)(c), for the word “eighteen”; and

(b) in subsection (8), for the word “18”,

there shall be substituted the word “ sixteen ”.

(4) In paragraphs (1) and (5) of Article 3 of the M4 Homosexual Offences (Northern Ireland) Order 1982 (homosexual acts in private), for the word “18” there shall be substituted the word “ 17 ”.

(5) Section 145 of the M5 Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 (which is superseded by this section) is hereby repealed.

Commencement Information

I1 S. 1 wholly in force; s. 1 not in force at Royal Assent see s. 7(3); s. 1(1)(2)(4)(5) in force for E.W.N.I. at 8.1.2001 by S.I. 2000/3303, art. 2; s. 1(3)(5) in force for S. by S.S.I. 2000/452, art. 2(a)

Marginal Citations

M1 1956 c. 69.

M2 1967 c. 60.

M3 1995 c. 39.

M4 S.I. 1982/1536 (N.I. 19).

M5 1994 c. 33.