Once again, Northern Ireland lags behind progress in the rest of the United Kingdom. The health minister at Stormont, Edwin Poots MLA of the DUP has said that he will not be rushed on lifting the ban on gay men giving blood. Last October, he was quizzed by the health committee in the Northern Ireland Assembly and told them,

I am not going to be rushed, pushed or harassed on an issue that is about public safety

The Minister continued to state his position:

We are not west Brits here: we are Northern Ireland, and we are a devolved Administration. We receive advice, and we have civil servants and others to give us advice. I am not some direct rule Minister. I am in charge here, and I make the decisions. I will seek to do that within the law, I will seek to do what is right for the population that I serve and I will give due consideration to everything.

The Minister, may be doing everything he can within the law, but does his reasoning actually stand up to tests? Stephen Glenn of the NI Liberal Democrats argues otherwise. Even before the Minister gave evidence to the health committee, Stephen said:

If the Minister is still contemplating his decision after his rather final words in Spetember (sic) we should applaud him for doing so. But like too much LGBT legislation in Northern Ireland we don’t want the devolved powers to kick it into the long grass hoping that people will forget about it, only for central government to force it through. Let’s have some action after all the Belfast Agreement says that all policy should be tested against LGBT criteria among others.

Now, I am a gay man who is not able to give blood. For a very simple reason: I am living with HIV. However, while I may not give blood and for a very, very good reason, I see no reason why Northern Ireland should be lagging behind the rest of the UK on this issue.

The advice given by NHS Blood and Transplant (for England & North Wales) says:

You should never give blood if:
* You have ever had syphilis, HTLV (Human T – lymphotropic virus), HIV or hepatitis C.
* You’ve ever worked as a prostitute.
* You’ve ever injected yourself with drugs – even once.

You should not give blood for 12 months after sex with:
* A man (if you’re a male). Men who have had anal or oral sex with another man (with or without a condom) are deferred from blood donation for 12 months.
* A man who has had sex with another man (if you’re a female).
* A prostitute.
* Anyone who has ever injected themselves with drugs.
* Anyone with haemophilia or a related blood clotting disorder who has received clotting factor concentrates.
* Anyone of any race who has been sexually active in parts of the world where AIDS/HIV is very common. This includes countries in Africa.

Here in Northern Ireland, it is difficult to find any advice on the NI Blood Transfusion Service website. Certainly, I have not been able to find any… Perhaps the NIBTS is as embarrassed by the Minister’s stance as I am.

This week, Northern Ireland’s students are being asked to come on board with putting more pressure on Edwin Poots to live this ban. Many of us know that NUS-USI campaigns on many issues, not just student-related ones. The organisation articulates the views of students on many issues including delivering fairness and equality in society. Speaking ahead of this year’s conference, President of NUS-USI Adrianne Peltz has said:

For a ban to exist on gay men giving blood is an absolute disgrace as it flies in the face of equality and fairness. Think of the appalling message that this ban sends out. The fact that this blood donation ban is being lifted elsewhere but still exists here brings shame on Northern Ireland.

For government to fail to lift the ban would be scandalous. As well as this being a key equality issue, we also need more blood donors here and this is literally a matter of life and death for a significant number of people in Northern Ireland.

NUS-USI LGBT Officer, Chris Geddis, said:

We need to see this ban overturned immediately and we will keep the pressure on the Minister until he delivers fairness on this issue. Government must reflect on what having this ban says to the rest of the world about Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland simply must be a society that has equality and respect for everyone, and this ban must be removed as a matter of urgency.

Anyone who wants to put pressure on the Minister, should write to:

Minister for Health, Social Services and Public Safety
Room C5.10
Castle Buildings
Stormont Estate
Belfast
BT4 3SQ

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