UK to roll out chemical castration for sex offenders

The treatment been used in Germany and Denmark on a voluntary basis, and in Poland as mandatory for some offenders

- ASSOCIATED PRESS

The British government will roll out the use of medication to suppress the sex drive of sex offenders, as part of a package of measures to reduce the risk of reoffending and alleviate the pressures on the prison system, which is running out of space.

Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood said Thursday that so-called chemical castration would be used in 20 prisons in two regions and that she was considering making it mandatory.

"Of course, it is vital that this approach is taken alongside psychological interventions that target other causes of offending, like asserting power and control," she said in a statement to Parliament following the release of an independent sentencing review,