ISPCC backs opposition to Shatter's age-of-consent proposal
The ISPCC has insisted that the age of consent should stay at 17 and not be lowered.
The charity's comments come as the Justice Minister considers rowing back on the proposed changes put forward by her predecessor, Alan Shatter.
Frances Fitzgerald believes lowering the age of consent to 16 could increase the trafficking of teenage prostitutes.
ISPCC director of services Caroline O' Sullivan said that young people need to be emotionally mature enough before engaging in sexual activity.
"The age of consent, as it currently stands at 17, is a good age, because the reality is very often children and young people are getting involved in sexual activity too young, and by reducing it, that encourages that,"
"And the reality is that, young people, when they're involved in any form of sexual activity, they need to be emotionally as well as physically mature enough to be able to cope with that particular experience."
