No pardons for historic gay offences in Northern Ireland since law introduced in 2018
Only three people have applied to the scheme since it was introduced in 2018 (Canva)
Northern Ireland’s scheme to disregard historic convictions for now-abolished gay sex offences has granted no pardons or disregards in the eight years since it came into force in 2018.
Just three people have applied to the scheme since it was introduced, and none of the applications met the relevant criteria. The scheme was approved by the Northern Ireland Assembly in 2016.
Offences covered include gross indecency and procuring others to commit homosexual acts. Eligibility requires that the act was consensual, involved someone aged 17 or above, and is no longer classed as an offence.
Posthumous pardons automatically apply to anyone convicted of offences covered by the scheme who has since died. While a definitive number of people convicted under the relevant laws has not been formally established, it is thought that hundreds can apply.
Why have so few people applied?
The Rainbow Project, an LGBTQ+ charity in Northern Ireland, helped some of those who applied for their conviction to be quashed or disregarded.
Its chief executive, Scott Cuthbertson, told the BBC he was not surprised by the low uptake, but added that “that doesn’t mean the scheme hasn’t been a success”.
“There’s the message it sends that what happened prior to 1982 was wrong and shouldn’t have happened and that the people who were convicted under legislation at that point deserve not to have that stain on their record,” he said.
Cuthbertson also urged people who may be eligible to consider applying: “When it comes to the low uptake, I would encourage anyone who has that on their record, who wants to remove it and are maybe a wee bit worried about opening up old wounds or dealing with past issues, it is worth it.”
Jeffrey Dudgeon, the gay rights campaigner linked to the legal fight that helped end Northern Ireland’s ban on sex between men, said he “always knew that there wouldn’t be very many people eligible for pardons given the length of time had elapsed since”.
Will Northern Ireland’s ‘Turing’s Law’ be changed?
The Northern Ireland Department of Justice said it is reviewing the scheme’s scope and intends to put reform proposals to ministers after the next Assembly elections.
In England and Wales, 19 convictions were eligible for a disregard for the year ending March 2026, down from 35 the previous year, according to government statistics. In Scotland, 22 people have applied to have convictions disregarded, and 16 applications have been granted since 2019.
Male homosexual acts were criminalised in Northern Ireland until 1982, following a challenge brought by Dudgeon, as set out in a look back at the decriminalisation fight.
