GAY BLOOD

Should gay men, who may have or may not have had unprotected sex with other men, be allowed to donate blood? The risk, of course, is that the blood may be contaminated with HIV; so there is a serious issue there. But you would think that the rules would be the same within one country.

Not in the U.K. One thing not generally known, even within Britain, is that the law can be different in different parts of the country. Scots law, which has strong roots in Roman law, can be very different from the common law of England and Wales. Norther Irish law generally follows English law; but in some areas, notably criminal law, it can be different.

A complete ban on gay men's donating blood was introduced across the whole of the U.K. at the height of the Aids crisis in the 1980's. This was lifted for England, Scotland and Wales in November 2011, and replaced with rules that allow donations if the man has not had sexual relations with another man within the previous 12 months. However, the blanket ban was not lifted in Northern Ireland.

A judge has now ruled that the decision not to lift the ban was "irrational"; I agree. However, both the Northern Ireland health minister and the U.K.'s Secretary of State for Health are appealing against that judgment. That seems bizarre.

Walter Blotscher