A legal ban on gay and bisexual men having sex before donating blood has been scrapped in Germany.

The country’s coalition parliament – the Bundestag – voted to remove the restriction on Thursday, 16th March.

Instead, all donors will be asked if they have recently had sex and about their recent sexual lifestyle.

Guidelines from the German Medical Association stated that gay and bisexual men could only give blood if they had not had a new or more than one sex partner in four months.

The regulation aimed to reduce the risk of passing on a possible HIV infection.

But SPD MP Heike Engelhardt, aged 61, said: “There is no scientific reason for this discrimination.

“It’s a shame that people in 2023 are still struggling with such disadvantages and prejudices.”

Health Minister Karl Lauterbach added: “Hidden discrimination shouldn’t be allowed on this issue either.”

But the individual sexual behaviour of each donor will still be taken into account during risk assessment process, claimed the parliament.

The new law also applies to transgender people.

MPs additionally raised the maximum donor age limit, which was 65 years for first-time donors and between 70 and 75 years for repeated donors.

All persons willing to donate will be assessed by a medic regardless of their age in the future.