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Importance of consent-based rape legislation in the EU

TA-10-2026-0120 · P10_TA(2026)0120 · PE774.376

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✦ In short · AI summary of this text, generated 4 Sept 2026

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Parliament's resolution on consent-based rape legislation calls for an EU-wide definition of rape based on freely given, withdrawable consent, and urges member states to align laws with international standards. It demands support for victims, including medical care, training for professionals, education on consent, and data collection, while addressing trauma responses and intersectional discrimination.

Key points

  1. Calls on the Commission to propose legislation defining rape based on freely given, informed, withdrawable consent, in line with the Istanbul Convention.
  2. Urges member states using force-based definitions to reform their laws and support victims.
  3. Welcomes consent-based reforms in some member states and encourages ratification of the Istanbul Convention.
  4. Stresses that consent must be affirmative and unambiguous; silence, lack of resistance, or past conduct do not imply consent.
  5. Recognizes trauma responses like tonic immobility and requires legislation to reflect that absence of resistance does not equal consent.
  6. Calls for an intersectional, victim-centred approach in all policies to ensure equal protection for all victims.
  7. Demands that consent-based legislation apply in digital and virtual environments, prosecuting non-consensual acts there.
  8. Requires member states to provide comprehensive medical care, including emergency contraception and safe abortion, and long-term support.
  9. Calls for mandatory training for professionals and guidelines to prevent secondary victimisation.
  10. Asks the Commission to issue EU guidelines on consent-based sexuality education and run awareness campaigns.
  11. Invites member states to extend limitation periods for rape offences and ensure effective reparation.
  12. Calls for funding for civil society and data collection on rape, with EIGE and FRA support.

Who is affected

  • Member states: must reform rape laws, provide services, train professionals, and collect data.
  • Victims and survivors of rape: gain access to medical care, legal support, and reparation.
  • Law enforcement and judiciary: receive mandatory training to handle cases sensitively.
  • Civil society organisations and women's services: receive funding and support.

Figures and deadlines

  • 17.2% of women in the EU have experienced sexual violence; 1 in 20 women has been raped.
  • Annual cost of gender-based violence in the EU is EUR 366 billion.
  • 70% of victims in a Swedish study reported tonic immobility.

Legal basis: Articles 2 and 3(2) and (3) TEU; Articles 8, 10, 19, 82(2), 83(1) TFEU