PSNI offers clarification after deleting tweet about consent and rape at Christmas

The original tweet, posted on Saturday, has since been deleted.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) has attempted to clarify a tweet posted on its account on Saturday relating to the issue of consent over the Christmas period. A tweet posted from the PSNI account on Saturday read: "If you bump into that special someone under the mistletoe tonight, remember that without consent it is rape. #SeasonsGreetings". After it was the subject of a significant reaction from Twitter users on Saturday night and Sunday morning, the tweet was deleted on Sunday morning. A similar, more detailed message, stating that "sex without consent is a crime", remains on the PSNI Facebook page. The PSNI posted the following message on Twitter later on Sunday morning in an attempt to clarify the intended message in the original tweet. https://twitter.com/PoliceServiceNI/status/937266196659032064 “We posted a message on Twitter yesterday that some may have taken out of context but the message remains the same; when you are out socialising over the Christmas period, please remember without consent it is rape.”