Microsoft Xbox One
The boy said he wanted to 'try out' what he had seen on his friend's Xbox on his sister

A 13-year-old boy has admitted to raping his eight-year-old sister after watching pornography on a friend's Xbox.

The teenager, who cannot be named for legal reasons, also pleaded guilty to indecently assaulting the girl and instructing her to perform a sexual act after wanting to "try out" what he had viewed.

The boy told police he had chosen his sister because she was small and "couldn't remember stuff", Blackburn Magistrates Court heard.

Police described the incident as one of the most "tragic sexual experimentation" they had witnessed.

The boy has been bailed and told to live with family members until a youth offending team prepares a pre-sentence report on him. His sister is now being supported by specialist officers.

The case has reopened the debate on the ease of which young people can access pornographic material online. The government is currently planning to impose an "opt-in" internet filter which would require all households to choose whether they want to be able to see explicit material online.

Blackburn MP Jack Straw said it is the responsibility of internet service providers to make sure children are not able to witness pornography online.

He said: "This case is breathtakingly horrible.

"It is a horrifying crime which underlines how porn is too readily available to juveniles.

"I hope that the internet service providers recognise that they have greater responsibilities for controlling access to porn."

Jon Brown, NSPCC lead for tackling sexual abuse, said: "This is a horrific and tragic case which must have caused tremendous heartache for the family.

"We know that the vast amount of inappropriate, unrealistic and sometimes downright harmful pornography some children are exposed to through the internet can be extremely damaging to young minds."

Xbox users can customise the type of content they can view online on the device.

Parents can also block access to the internet and change online safety and privacy settings.

After the hearing, Det Insp Claire Holbrook, from the public protection unit, said: "This is one of those tragic sexual experimentation cases.

"The family is now being supported and the child is recovering well."