The plenary session of the European Parliament will be starting this afternoon (16-19 June). Tomorrow, Parliament will debate and vote on updating EU-wide legislation on child sexual abuse crimes “to account for technological advances and to improve victim support”. The legislation would revise the definitions of crimes to take account of new technological realities, raise certain maximum punishments, and provide better support to victims. New about this draft law is that it criminalises child sexual abuse “instruction manuals” and artificially-created deep-fake imagery. In the draft position being voted upon and adopted by the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, MEPs proposed the removal of limitations on the length of time victims have to report a crime and the introduction of a new definition of consent for children who are above the age of sexual consent. In addition to the directive, a separate regulation on child sexual abuse is also being discussed by lawmakers. Parliament adopted its position on the draft regulation in 2023; legislative talks can begin once Council reaches a common position.