The Trudeau government has unveiled a new bill to modernize the Criminal Code, by beefing up laws around sexual assault and scrapping other crimes that are now considered obsolete.

The aim is to bring criminal laws up to date.

Federal Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould says the key focus for the Trudeau government is on sexual assault. “These changes would clarify certain aspects of the law of consent, the admissibility of evidence, the legal representation for the complainant.”

More specifically the new legislation will make it clear that an unconscious person cannot consent to sexual activity. It will also expand rape shield provisions to include text messages and other communications, in order to prevent previous sexual communications from being used against a complainant.

Furthermore, the bill will also scrap obsolete laws that no longer apply in today’s society, such as owning a comic book about crime, the ban on challenging someone to a duel, and pretending to practice witchcraft.