Minister: I will make sharing porn without consent a crime
McEntee set to bring proposals to Cabinet
THE sharing of pornographic content of a person without their consent will become a criminal offence, under new legislation the Justice Minister is fast-tracking.
Helen McEntee is to bring proposals to Cabinet next week that would make it a criminal offence to share intimate photographs of people without their knowledge.
Ahead of this, Ms McEntee warned that the law would apply to anyone who shared porn with another, without seeking the permission of the person in the imagery. It would even apply if consent was given for the image to be taken, she added, and the intent of the ‘sharer’ of the content would also be irrelevant.
It follows the leak of tens of thousands of private images of an intimate and sexual nature involving Irish women, which has provoked calls for Government action.
Ms McEntee said yesterday that she wants the legislation enacted ‘as soon as possible’.
She wrote on Twitter: ‘I know the recent leak of tens of thousands of intimate images of Irish women has caused so much upset and anger.
‘I share that anger and I want people to know that I am determined to act and to introduce tough new laws to ensure that anyone who shares these kinds of images will face serious criminal sanctions.’
Ms McEntee said she is working with Labour Party TD Brendan Howlin, who introduced legislation under the Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Bill during the last Dáil.
The minister added: ‘Ahead of this, I will bring proposals to Cabinet next Tuesday for inclusion in this Bill, which we want to enact as soon as possible. The measures I will bring to Cabinet will make it a criminal offence to share intimate images without consent.
‘This is not just about revenge porn – sharing such images will become a criminal offence, regardless of the motivation of the person who passes them on. It will also be irrelevant if consent is given for an intimate image to be taken – I will ensure they can never be shared, even if consent was given for the image to be taken.’
The decision to bring forward the legislation was welcomed by Noeline Blackwell, CEO of the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre.
She said: ‘That’s a very important development. I welcome the minister’s recognition of the need to drive forward with this legislation.’
The fast-tracking of legislation by Ms McEntee came after more than 50,000 people – including a host of Irish stars – signed a petition calling for revenge porn to be made a criminal offence in Ireland.
Musician Bressie, model Roz Purcell, influencer Rosie Connolly and singer Erica Cody urged people to sign the petition in recent days.
Ms Purcell shared the petition on Instagram, and said: ‘To any girls affected that might be reading this – I hope you’re OK.
‘Now any lads reading this – if your group chats start to share these nudes thinking it’s only a bit of fun, I recommend you think about the girls and women in your life like your mum, sisters, friends, girlfriend and imagine if that was them. Don’t share them. Have respect.’
Ms Cody also spoke out on Twitter, saying: ‘This is a disgusting case of injustice. We need to protect our women. Please sign the petition & support these women.‘
Revenge porn is not currently an offence in Ireland.
Victims Alliance this week said that while looking into a separate case, it came across numerous digital folders, containing tens of thousands of images, labelled as being of Irish women. The group has since handed the material over to the gardaí, who are investigating.
Ms Blackwell told the Irish Daily Mail: ‘This is sexual abuse and it’s digital sexual abuse.’
‘This is digital sexual abuse’