From Yahoo news today:
David Blunkett is to set out proposals to
modernise "outdated" sex offence laws this
autumn.
In a speech to police officers on Wednesday, the
home secretary announced his intention to reform
antiquated indecency laws, widely regarded as
discriminating against homosexuals.
"We will legislate in the next session of parliament
on sex offences and sex offenders," he said.
It is expected that the government will sweep away laws which
make it illegal for two men to engage in sex in a hotel bedroom.
Laws which prevent two men kissing in public are also likely to be
scrapped.
Other indecency laws likely to go include those which make it illegal
for a married couple to engage in buggery and which prevent
consensual group sex amongst homosexuals.
Tough laws governing male soliciting - known as "cottaging" - could
also be swept away.
But in a bid to fend-off criticism from family rights groups, the home
secretary has also pledged tougher protection for children.
"I am in the process of finalising proposals to update centuries old,
outdated law on sex offences," he said.
"We are balancing here the toughening of protection, particularly for
children, while ensuring the law is fair and non-discriminatory and
reflects the 21st rather than the 19th century view of social policy."
The reforms will follow a two year consultation and are set to widen
the number offences on the sex offenders register.
The announcement comes as the government puts in place plans
for a widespread review of Britain's criminal justice laws.
Echoing Tony Blair's call for a reorientation of criminal justice to
"catch the guilty", Blunkett argued that the balance had swung too
far towards the defendant.
He claimed that society was losing out in a conflict between
individual and collective rights.
"We have moved from the emphasis on the rights of society to the
rights of the individual, he said.
Acknowledging that over the last two decades a series of
miscarriages of justice had understandably fuelled "the fear of an
over-centralised state", the home secretary said the pendulum had
swung too far.
"The result is that justice is sometimes seen being about protecting
the individual from the rest of us rather than protecting us from
individuals," he said.
"We need to rebalance the system so that it delivers real justice for
victims and the wider community."
Blunkett told police officers his job involved a fine balancing act
between "victims on the one hand - accused on the other".
"Terrorised on the one hand - and accused terrorists on the other,"
he added. "Security and safety on one side - and freedom of
movement, thought and action on the other."
He warned that democracy could be the victim if criminal justice
reform failed to restore public faith in the system. "A healthy
democracy is one which retains the right balance of individual
freedom versus the rights and mutuality of us as a society and
community," he said.
"We must ensure that the justice system, from law enforcement to
correction, is both legitimate and credible if it is not to undermine
the very democracy we seek to preserve."
"Justice should evolve with the nature of criminality, including its
globalisation. We need to ensure we have systems and laws in
place that reflect today's knowledge about the patterns of crime,"
he said.
"We also need to balance achieving modernisation with avoiding
distortion which blocks progress, frightens and misleads." |
