The UK government has announced plans to expand a trial of chemical castration for sex offenders, which will see the treatment offered to more prisoners across 20 prisons in England. The pilot program, which was initially launched in south-west England, aims to assess the effectiveness of voluntary chemical castration in reducing reoffending rates among sex offenders.
Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood said she would expand the trial to two regions and explore a national rollout, although no timeline has been set for this decision. Forensic psychiatrist Prof Don Grubin welcomed the expansion, saying it could help reduce reoffending rates among sex offenders who have compulsive thoughts about sex or problematic sexual preoccupations.
Chemical castration involves delivering drugs that limit invasive sexual thoughts and libido through a combination of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and anti-androgens. The treatment is delivered alongside psychiatric work to target other causes of offending, such as power and control issues.
The UK’s decision to expand the trial comes after an independent sentencing review recommended continuing the program. The review found that 21% of adults serving immediate custodial sentences in England were convicted of sexual offenses. Researchers have shown that chemical castration can significantly reduce reoffending rates among sex offenders, with one study showing a 60% reduction in reoffending rates among a group of treated offenders.
However, some critics have raised concerns about the ethics of mandatory chemical castration, saying it could be seen as coercive and unethical. Prof Grubin acknowledged that mandatory chemical castration could be problematic, but said that making it a condition of parole licenses, such as in California, could be an effective way to implement the treatment.
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/crmkv3jezzdo