Raising the minimum age of sexual consent from the current 13 years to 16 years is included in the new draft Penal Code, according to the Ministry of Health.
The measure is designed to prevent child abuse and is not intended to criminalise relations between people of a similar age or maturity. Spain has the lowest age of consent in the EU and the Health Minister, Ana Mato, said that the measure was in response to the recommendations of the Child Rights Committee of the UN in 2007 in efforts to combat paedophilia. Prompt action as usual.
The same measure had been proposed earlier in the year, along with raising the marriageable age from 14 years to 16 years. The latest proposal is expected to be approved by the Council of Ministers at their next meeting, after which it will begin the slow process through the various parliamentary procedures.