My issues with statutory rape...

I thought the same until it happened to my cousin. Her boyfriend who was 19 at that time (she was 15) also slept with someone who was significantly younger. She realised just how much she was manipulated so he can have sex with young girls.

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I believe that the law is actually an adult (over 18) having sex with someone below the age of consent. So like an 18 year old having sex with a 15 year old.

Honestly I'm half and half. Some 15 year olds can probably make an informed decision. But a 15 year old is also probably more likely to be pressured into something than someone older.
On this basis I actually think the law does balance quite well with protecting children. 15 is not old enough to consent. 18 is old enough to take responsibility. 15 years old is a child, 18 is an adult. Very few 15 year old girls look like they're 18. If the guy is in any way unsure that they may not be over the age of consent then they should ask!

In many places of the world, underage sex carries no or lower penalty if the other person is also underage.

And do you agree with this?

If it's 18 then I guess I'm mistaken.

Yes I agree with 15 year olds likely to be manipulated but I think many know what they're doing snd what they want. They want to explore and have that natural urge in them.

I think 15 is old enough to consent tbh. I mean UK have the highest teenage pregnancy rates in Europe but our age of consent is higher than some in Europe.

I do agree with this.

I only have problem with say 20 year olds having sex with 15 year olds, because 15 year olds are more easily manipulated.

Of course, some 15 yos are more mature than others, but we have to draw the line somewhere, since not having any limit is clearly not a good idea. And where ever we draw the line, there will be people on the wrong side of the line.

This is a UK-based site. We don't have "statutory rape" in England and Wales. The closest we have is the offence for sexual activity with a child of 13.

13, not 16, not 18. This is not a state of America.
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2003/42/section/5

Does anyone have a specific problem with 13 as a cut-off point? Too high, too low?

Or if a 15 year old girl goes to a nightclub with fake ID and pulls a guy but the guy is totally oblivious to her real age because she looks older. The guy could be in a lot of heat...should guys have to ask every girl their age when they pull? No.

Should have checked section 9....
Child sex offences
9 Sexual activity with a child
(1)A person aged 18 or over (A) commits an offence if—
(a)he intentionally touches another person (B),
(b)the touching is sexual, and
(c)either—
(i)B is under 16 and A does not reasonably believe that B is 16 or over, or
(ii)B is under 13.

It's not called statutory rape. But in essence it is the same thing. A person over 18 having sexual contact with a person under 16 is a sexual offence if they know/reasonably would believe they're under 16.

From what I understand, as long as the kid is at least 13, being convinced with reasonable cause that they were of age is a valid legal defence, though I might be wrong.

Close-in-age consensual sex from 12-15 is de jure illegal but de facto tolerated in the UK. Personally I'd prefer a Canada-style staged system where it's de jure legal, but it's not too important.

The only problem I have with age of consent laws (that I don't really have a solution to) is controlling parents abusing them as proxy for their dislike of their kid's partner (this often happens with gay teenagers and homophobic parents). I remember hearing about a case in the US a while back about a 15-year-old girl having sex with her 17-year-old girlfriend and then her parents taking her girlfriend to court over it simply because they didn't like their daughter being gay.

Not called it, and not same thing. Note the fact it's not strict liability due to the reasonable belief element. The American "statutory rape" generally is strict liability. That's why these laws are so notorious.

You need to reword your question, "Do you agree with statutory rape?" Is a completely different to "Should statutory rape be made legal?" or " Should statutory rape be considered rape?" Just because I typed those questions doesn't mean i agree with them.

I'm very sceptical of the age of consent (at least in its current form) in that it makes consent and freedom null for the sake of paternalistic moralistic condescension, but what I'm not sceptical about is responsibility, and the importance of consent; if a person does not consent to sex, then that should, obviously, be rape in any circumstance.
most teens start puberty at 13, for example - so why isn't the age of consent 13? are we simply, as a society, too scared of 13 year olds having sex? is that it? is it not about consent then but us dictating to the lives of teenagers? ...why?

I mean, does *anybody* think that 15 years olds are "too stupid" to consent to sex? seriously? that's actually insane. listen to how idiotic that claim is out loud...