Gay offences pardons bill goes out to views

Holyrood’s Equalities & Human Rights Committee is inviting views from the general public on the Historical Sexual Offences (Pardons and Disregards) Bill, published earlier this month.

The bill proposes granting a pardon to all men convicted of consensual same-sex activity under now repealed discriminatory laws and, if applied for, a legal disregard so that their criminal record would not be considered if a background check were carried out. The pardon will also apply posthumously.

The committee, which is examining the bill at stage 1 of the parliamentary process, is keen to hear about views on the procedure for obtaining a disregard, and whether or not the bill goes far enough to address the impact that the former laws have had on the men convicted under them.

Convener Christina McKelvie MSP commented: “This bill sets out to correct a historic injustice by ensuing that convictions don’t continue to harm the lives of men convicted of acts which are no longer a crime.

“It is very important that we learn the lessons of how these discriminatory laws impacted on the lives of people so that we don’t repeat the mistakes of the past.

“As a committee, we will be spending a few months looking at the details of the bill so we can consider any areas which may need to be improved or changed. We want to hear from anyone who has a view on the bill.

“We are especially anxious to hear from men who will receive a pardon and who may wish to apply for a disregard of their criminal records. If you, or someone close to you, will be impacted by the bill we urge you to take part in our work. We will treat your personal stories with sensitivity.”

Click here to access the bill and related papers. The closing date for making a submission is Friday 19 January 2018. These can be sent by email to equalities.humanrights@parliament.scot