Majority support allowing gay and bisexual men to donate blood, research finds

Nearly three-quarters of people believe the Government should allow gay and bisexual men to donate blood, according to new research commissioned by the National LGBT Federation.

Seventy per cent of those polled believe men who have sex with men should be able to donate blood. Currently, they can do so only after a four-month sexual contact gap, down from a year previously.

The survey found a majority of people (55 per cent) felt the Government should extend gender recognition to trans children under 16 years of age, to allow them legally change their gender, with the consent of their parents.

Researchers found one in five people neither agreed or disagreed with such a move, which researchers said suggested people may not have enough information on the topic.

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Two-thirds who took part said conversion therapy should be banned, while four-fifths believe schools sex education should include information about LGBT+ people.

Slightly more than half say they “frequently” interact with gay, lesbian or bisexual people, while a third have “occasional” interactions. Just 2 per cent say they “never” do so.

Nine per cent said they frequently interact with transgender people, while two-thirds said they had either rarely or never interacted with someone who was trans.

The LGBT Helpline is a non-judgmental and confidential service available on 1890-929539 or lgbt.ie. For confidential, non-judgmental support, call the Samaritans at 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org