Sir, – With regard to abusive offers from landlords to forgive all or part of the rent due from their tenants in exchange for taking part in a sexual act (including sexual intercourse) with them ("Minister wants criminal offence for landlords offering free rent in exchange for sex", News, February 17th), it seems to me at least arguable that if that act does take place because a tenant is so short of money and accommodation that they have little practical option but to comply, he or she cannot be said to have given consent "freely and voluntarily", as stipulated in the definition of consent in Section 9(1) of the Criminal Law (Rape) (Amendment) Act 1990, inserted by Section 48 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017.
Section 9(2) then goes on to list some situations in which there is no consent, and Section 9(3) says: “This Section does not limit the circumstances in which it may be established that a person does not consent to a sexual act”. – Yours, etc,
CAROLINE COUNIHAN, BL
Legal Director,
Rape Crisis
Network Ireland,
Dublin 7.