Submitted on Thursday 1st May 2025
Rejected on Wednesday 4th June 2025
Current status: Rejected
Rejection code: duplicate (see below for details)
Make UK rape laws gender-neutral under one section.
We want the law to treat all rape equally, no matter who commits it. Right now, women can't be charged with rape, only assault. This isn't fair. We want a gender-neutral law that gives all victims equal justice and matches international human rights standards.
The current law only allows men to be charged with rape, ignoring that women can also commit this crime. Instead, women are charged with assault by penetration, a term that sounds less serious and is grouped under general sexual assault. This downplays the offence and its impact. Rape should be defined by the act, not the gender. To promote true equality and justice, women must be held to same legal standard, with offences treated equally in name, charge and consequence.
You can't sign this petition because it was rejected. But you can still comment on it here at Repetition.me!
The Government e-Petitions Team gave the following reason:
There's already a petition about this issue. We cannot accept a new petition when we already have one about a very similar issue.
You are more likely to get action on this issue if you sign and share a single petition.
You may wish to sign this petition which calls for the same action: petition.parliament.uk/petitions/706166
216.73.217.179 Tue, 23 Jun 2026 11:12:01 +0100
