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The "Alan Turing law" is an informal term for the law in the United Kingdom, contained in the Policing and Crime Act 2017,[1] which serves as an amnesty law to pardon men who were cautioned or convicted under historical legislation that outlawed homosexual acts.[2] The provision is named after Alan Turing, the World War II codebreaker and computing pioneer, who was convicted of gross indecency in 1952. Turing received a royal pardon posthumously in 2013. The law applies in England and Wales.[2]
Several proposals had been put forward for an Alan Turing law,[3][4][5] and introducing such a law has been government policy since 2015.[6] To implement the pardon, the British Government announced on 20 October 2016 that it would support an amendment to the Policing and Crime Act that would provide a posthumous pardon, also providing an automatic formal pardon for living people who had had such offences removed from their record.[7][8] A rival bill to implement the Alan Turing law, in second reading at the time of the government announcement, was filibustered.[9] The bill received royal assent on 31 January 2017, and the pardon was implemented that same day.[10] The law provides pardons only for men convicted of acts that are no longer offences; those convicted under the same laws of offences that were still crimes on the date the law went into effect, such as cottaging, underage sex, or rape, were not pardoned.[11]
Manchester Withington MP John Leech, often described as 'the architect' of the Alan Turing Law, led a high-profile campaign to pardon Turing and submitted several bills to parliament, leading to the eventual posthumous pardon.[12]
- ^ "Policing and Crime Act 2017 (Part 9, Chapter 1, Sections 164 to 172)". legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 23 September 2022.
- ^ a b Alderson, Reevel (15 October 2019). "Pardon for gay men convicted under abolished laws". BBC News. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
In England and Wales, where homosexual acts between consenting adults was permitted after 1967, there is similar legislation - dubbed the "Turing law" after the World War Two code-breaker Alan Turing who was pardoned posthumously in 2013 for his conviction of gross indecency.
- ^ Al-Othman, Hannah (29 June 2016). "MP proposes new law to pardon historic convictions for homosexuality". London Evening Standard. Retrieved 24 September 2016.
- ^ Littauer, Dan (24 September 2016). "Scots MP introduces Turing Law to quash anti-gay convictions". kaleidoscot.com. Archived from the original on 5 March 2017. Retrieved 24 September 2016.
- ^ Devlin, Kate (29 June 2016). "SNP MP launches bid to pardon those charged under homophobic laws no longer on statute book". The Herald. Glasgow. Retrieved 24 September 2016.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Bloombergwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Craig, Jon (19 October 2016). "Men to be pardoned for abolished sex offences". Sky News. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
- ^ Cowburn, Ashley (19 October 2016). "Government to pardon thousands of gay men under 'Alan Turing Law'". The Independent. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
- ^ Tara John (21 October 2016). "Why a British Bill That Would Pardon Men Convicted of Overturned Gay Sex Law Was Filibustered". Time. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
- ^ "Policing and Crime Act". gov.uk. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
- ^ "'Alan Turing law': Thousands of gay men to be pardoned". BBC News. 20 October 2016. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
- ^ "John Leech secures historic deal with Government on 'Alan Turing Law' – Out News Global". Out News Global. 20 October 2016. Retrieved 2 November 2018.
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