My Lords, no amendments were submitted and we proceed to final division.

Sexual Offences Bill

A
BILL
TO

repeal the Sullivan Rape Anonymity Act 2014 and amend the Sexual Offences Act 2003

BE IT ENACTED by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—

(1) Definitions

(a) Police authority refers to any police authority defined in Schedules 1, 2, and 2A of the Police Act 1996 or any local policing body as defined in the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011.

(2) Repeal of the Sullivan Rape Anonymity Act 2014

(a) The Sullivan Rape Anonymity Act 2014 shall be repealed in its entirety.

(b) A police authority shall be allowed to divulge any information about an investigation into an offence defined in the Sexual Offences Act 2003.

(3) Positions of Trust

(a) At the end of Section 21 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003, insert:

“(17) This subsection applies if A looks after a person under the age of 18 in a capacity as a guard or constable.”
“(18) This subsection applies if A looks after a person under the age of 18 as an employer.”

(b) At the end of section 22(5) of the Act, insert:

“Guard or constable” is someone who is serving in the capacity of a police officer and has detained someone, or is supervising someone who has been detained;
“Employer” is someone who is recognised in a paid, internship, or volunteer employment based setting as in a position of trust over others, with duties that include but are not limited to supervision over employees, interns, and volunteers.

(4) Short title, commencement and extent

a) This Act may be cited as the Sexual Offences Act 2022.

b) This Act comes into force on the day after the day it is passed.

c) This Act extends to the entirety of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

This bill was written by the Shadow Transport Secretary and Shadow Minister Without Portfolio, Sir /u/model-elleeit OM KCB KBE CMG MP PC, The Rt. Hon. Member of Parliament for Cumbria and Lancashire North on behalf of the 35th Official Opposition. This bill was partially inspired by Sexual Offences (Position of Trust) Act 2020 by Tommy2Boys

Speech: Speaker, it is high time that this house comes together and repeals the terrible act that is the Sullivan Rape Anonymity Act 2014. This act is a disaster for victims of sexual assault and rape. The act seriously limits police powers to effectively investigate rapes and prevents victims of the crime from being able to disclose their identity unless a licensed therapist deems that it’s okay for them to do so.

Within the original act itself, the author admitted that “the crime of Rape and of Attempted Rape are extremely heinous.” Yet, the act continues on to limit the ability to investigate rapes in section 2A, which reads “Anonymity of the Accused shall extend to... [t]he Police Department not divulging the facts about the investigation about the accused to any person or persons including any media outlets such as newspaper.” The logic used in the act is appalling, because a rape is a heinous crime we should be hindering the police from being able to effectively investigate it? This is nonsensical and a disaster for the ability to bring justice to the victims of such an abhorrent crime.

Yet the pure lack of regard for victims of rape doesn’t end with Section 2A, in Section 3D it prevents victims of the crime from disclosing the identity of their rapist unless a licensed therapist or government-approved support group deems it okay to do so. And the metaphorical sour cherry on top of this is that if a victim does decide to share the identity of their rapist, then they are subject to a fine of up to £10,000, per section 4A.

The second part of this bill would further expand on the Sexual Offences Act 2003 and work done by Tommy2Boys with the Sexual Offences (Position of Trust) Act 2020. This bill would further close loopholes, this time strengthening restrictions against employers and constables and guards who are supervising detained minors. I echo the sentiment of Tommy in his own bill by saying that if you are entrusted with the care of a minor, you should not be using that position of trust to have sexual relations with them.

This all encompassing bill is a massive step forward in two ways. We are helping the victims of sex offences by allowing their crimes to be properly investigated and allowing them to open up about the identity of the people who assaulted them. The mental toll that the Sullivan Rape Anonmyity Act 2014 must have placed on them is unconscionable. We must rectify the mistakes of previous parliamentarians and repeal that disgusting act. Furthermore, we must close more loopholes in the Sexual Offences Act 2003. It’s clear that employers and constables oftentimes hold positions of trust over minors, and this bill recognizes and seeks to update the law to reflect that. This would open the door for people who abuse those positions of trust and engage in sexual relations with minors to be appropriately prosecuted. By passing this bill, this house would be greatly helping the victims of sex crimes and I urge all parliamentarians to vote in favor of it.

This division shall close on the 26th July at 10pm BST.