British government decides doping should not be criminalised

Sports minister Tracey Crouch says sanctions for drug offenses should be left to sports governing bodies to enforce.

The British government has decided doping cheats should not face criminal prosecutions.

A woman walks into the head office of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Reuters File Photo)

Sports minister Tracey Crouch says sanctions for drug offenses should be left to sports governing bodies to enforce. It follows a government review examining the merits of criminalizing doping.

Crouch says “it was right that we looked into the case for criminalizing doping,” adding that “the strong consensus is that it would not necessarily aid the fight against drug cheats.”