Sinn Féin Senator Fintan Warfield has today expressed his disappointment to Taoiseach Leo Varadkar that the Government’s Autumn Legislative Programme does not include legislation to provide for the disregard of criminal records of gay men. 

The men were convicted of historic offences prior to the decriminalisation of homosexuality. 

Speaking today in the Seanad, Senator Warfield said:

“The laws repealed by the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 1993 were discriminatory. They were contrary to human dignity and infringed on people’s right to privacy.

“It is now thirty years since homosexuality was decriminalised, yet to this day people still live under the cloud of criminal convictions.

“The Government has already acknowledged that these convictions were wrong, that significant harms were done to both the individuals arrested, charged, prosecuted, and convicted under the legislation and the wider LGBTQI+ community. 

“In 2018, on the 25^th anniversary of the decriminalisation of homosexuality, the Taoiseach issued an apology to the LGBTQI+ community on behalf of the State. 

“Last June the Government’s Working Group issued its final report which called for comprehensive provisions in the legislation to provide for disregard of the relevant previous convictions.

“In May this year the Seanad passed a Sinn Féin motion that called for the introduction of legislation and a scheme that would give effect to these recommendations.

“Sinn Féin is again calling on the Government to honour the commitments they have made and establish a clear timeline for the introduction of this legislation and a scheme that would disregard these historical convictions.”