Evidently, this misconduct was deemed necessary because, even with control of both the House and Senate infriendly hands, President Obama required Republican votes in the upper chamber to secure passage of his repeal initiative.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: How Congress Was Duped into Repealing Military Gay Ban

While ministers had threatened to use the Parliament Act to push the age of consent measure through the Lords, the same act cannot be used to repeal Section 28 because the legislation began its current parliamentary passage in the upper house.

BBC: age of consent