United Kingdom

Estimated number of people living with HIV:	53,000
Number of people prosecuted for HIV transmission:	4
Number of people convicted for HIV transmission:	4

Applicable law: Offences Against the Person Act 1861, Sections 18 and 20

Key wording in the law:

Section 18: Wounding with intent to do grievous bodily harm

Whosoever shall unlawfully and maliciously by any means whatsoever wound or cause any grievous bodily harm to any person …with intent, … to do some … grievous bodily harm to any person, [or with intent to resist or prevent the lawful apprehension or detainer of any person,] shall be guilty of an offence, and being convicted thereof shall be liable … to imprisonment for life.

Section 20: Inflicting bodily injury, with or without weapon

Whosoever shall unlawfully and maliciously wound or inflict any grievous bodily harm upon any other person, either with or without any weapon or instrument, shall be guilty of a misdemeanour, and being convicted thereof shall be liable … to imprisonment … for not more than five years.

Discussion:

From the responses received, it appears there have been three successful prosecutions of HIV transmission in England and one in Scotland (which has a different and distinct legal system). Each of these known prosecutions has led to a conviction. One of these convictions has been appealed. In their response to this consultation, the Home Office mentions one other case in which a prosecution was attempted, but this was abandoned before coming to court. Terrence Higgins Trust knew of several other investigations where charges were considered but not eventually brought.

In 1993, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) was said to be ‘powerless to act’ when an attempt was made to prosecute a male haemophiliac who was accused of infecting four women. That case prompted the Law Commission to look into the matter. In 1998, the Home Office issued a Consultation Paper proposing a new offence of ‘intentional transmission of a disease with intent to cause serious harm’. The Home Office indicated in the Consultation Paper that it believed its proposals were close in effect to those already in existence.

All convicted have been men and all charges were based on transmission during heterosexual sex. The person convicted in Scotland was a UK national. The three convicted in England had all sought, or been granted, asylum in the UK. The UK national was an ex-prisoner and unemployed; two of the three convicted in England were not legally allowed to work. Both are said to have worked illegally – one in a furniture shop and another as a musician. The third was described as a former solicitor’s clerk.

Only actual transmission of HIV to another person is punished. The maximum sentence applicable is life imprisonment.

During the ruling in one of the cases, the Court of Appeal indicated that the law would apply equally to transmission of other ‘serious sexually transmitted diseases’. It is not clear what these are. Terrence Higgins Trust stated that other sexually transmitted infections were subject to prosecution following an actual prosecution for transmission of herpes which failed on other grounds.

Completed questionnaires were received from Terrence Higgins Trust, George House Trust, and the Home Office, UK Coalition of People Living with HIV and AIDS and Dr. Mathew Weait.

< < < Ukraine

Return to country list

Continue : Survey questionnaire > > >

Responsibility for the accuracy and interpretation of the data rests with THT and GNP+ Europe. If you would like to provide further information for updates for this survey or make comments please go to comments.

You are free to circulate / disseminate / reproduce this information as long as the source of the original is quoted.