Irish age of consent to be lowered
 The age of
consent in Ireland looks set to be lowered to 16. The Oireachtas committee
on protection of children is expected to call for the change in the law
this week.
It is also set to recommend a constitutional amendment to restore the
absolute ban on underage sex.
The old law was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in May
because it did not allow defendants to claim they had made a mistake as
to the age of the young person involved.
At present the age of consent in Ireland is 17 — but girls aged
over 15 are not prosecuted for having sexual intercourse underage.
The move to lower the age of consent emerged as Tánaiste Michael
McDowell moved to rule out gay marriage.
He signalled instead that same-sex couples would only be granted civil
partnerships.
Mr McDowell told TDs no referendum-style legislation would be put forward
in this area after the Attorney General warned a Constitutional amendment
would be needed to bring in full marriage equality for gay couples.
Campaigners had been calling for Ireland to allow gay marriages in response
to changes in the law in Britain and the North of Ireland.
But it is believed politicians believe any such move would be unpopular
among the more traditional parts of the Irish electorate.
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