Upskirting to be crime in new child sex laws

New legislation expected early next year will remove outdated terms such as “child prostitution” from existing legislation, ban adults from masquerading as children online in order to groom victims, and extend existing abuse laws to cover live-streamed content. Upskirting will also become a specific criminal offence, as confirmed earlier this year.

Ms Long said: “Alongside these increased protections for children, the new offence of upskirting will tighten the law around voyeurism and offer increased protection to those who are subjected to this behaviour, whilst ensuring that offenders are prosecuted and subject to sex offender notification requirements.”

She added: “The sexual exploitation of children is an issue which is, and should be, of deep concern for all of us in society.

“I am determined to play my part in tackling this type of abuse and making our communities safer for our children and young people.”

A public consultation on the review of the law on child sexual exploitation (CSE) was launched by the Department of Justice in 2019. It looked at 14 areas of the criminal law which relate to circumstances where children can be sexually exploited.

In total 58 substantive responses were submitted from stakeholders and individuals. A summary of responses and an outline of the department’s intention for addressing all of the 14 specific issues examined were published yesterday.

Ms Long said: “I am grateful to all those who took the time to engage in the consultation on these important issues. I particularly want to thank those respondents who offered unique personal insights into the impact of such behaviours on survivors of child sexual exploitation.”

The teachers’ union, the NASUWT, welcomed the announcement on upskirting legislation.

Spokesperson Justin McCamphill said: “We have been involved in campaigning on this issue ever since two members of ours were victims of this in Enniskillen Royal Grammar School.

“Our members, however, simply do not want to copy the provisions in the rest of the UK, but want a law which makes all upskirting, carried out intentionally and without consent, to be made a criminal act.”