Minister Freer: Mythbusting the Conversion Therapy Ban

After a challenging 2021, it is important we now look ahead to what promises to be a 2022 filled with ambition, positivity and progression. I have long been an advocate and campaigner for LGBT equality, it is now several years since I first debated a ban on conversion therapy in Parliament.

Last year I was appointed as Minister for Equalities, and in that role I am determined to further the government’s ambitious equality agenda, driving forward positive change for the LGBT community.

My immediate priority is banning LGBT conversion therapy in this country. A lot of people on social media ask ‘why do you need to consult on this, just get on and ban it’. This is a key question, and I’m keen to emphasise just how important the consultation, and all the engagement work that my officials are undertaking, is to ensuring this ban is as effective as possible.

Once the consultation closes on February 4th, we will be preparing the conversion therapy ban legislation for the spring with the intention of introducing it as soon as Parliamentary time allows.

Conversion therapy can cause long lasting damage including negative mental health outcomes, homelessness, and isolation. There is no justification for these damaging practices and the evidence is clear that it does not work. We want to ensure people are protected from the extensive harm that conversion therapy causes victims. Our proposals outline the type of ban that we feel will be most effective in stopping the damage conversion therapy does.

Just prior to Christmas we extended the consultation until the beginning of February to make sure everybody has a chance to make their views heard. I would like to thank all those who have submitted their thoughts so far, as well as the numerous stakeholders who engaged with us while we were developing our proposals. We extended the consultation in order to allow ample opportunity for those who are yet to respond to be able to do so, and we also made an Easy Read version of the consultation available. We will continue to welcome responses right up to 4th February. The two ways to respond can be found at the end of this article.

Extending the consultation does not change our objective: the Government will ban the harmful practice of conversion therapy and that ban will protect everyone. We intend to strengthen existing criminal law provisions and introduce an offence that protects children and those that are unwillingly subjected to these practices.

While we have been consulting on how we are going to ban conversion therapy, there have been some erroneous interpretations and misinformation around our proposals in the media, and it appears to have become a proxy for wider debate on LGBT issues.

This Government has no intention to stop parents, clinicians, teachers, or anyone else from having open and explorative conversations with young people or others about their sexual orientation or whether they are transgender or not. As Minister for Equalities, I will not allow these kinds of supportive conversations to be outlawed. It is in no one’s interest.

Sensitive is the key word here. We want to encourage and protect sensitive and caring conversations; I will always defend the rights of young people to have open and robust conversations with the adults in their life. This is not conversion therapy. Instead, we believe an act of talking conversion therapy requires an intent to change a person to being something they are not, an active attempt by one person to change another person: This is quite distinct from the type of open conversations, that do not seek to pressure or coerce a person into any particular outcome, that we are all determined to protect.

We want to get this right. That is why we have engaged with clinicians, stakeholders, experts and individuals from a variety of perspectives and are consulting more widely on these important issues.

At the heart of this work is our determination to protect everyone, regardless of their sexual orientation or if they are transgender or not. The research that has been done on the impact of conversion therapy shows that it has the potential to cause long lasting damage, including negative mental health outcomes.

The most worrying misconception around our proposals is the allegation that some of those who advocate for this ban are doing so as a pretext to introducing ‘gender identity’ in legislation. It has been claimed that this would lead to people being able to change their legal sex without needing to follow the process to acquire a gender recognition certificate. To be clear, the legislation we will put forward following this consultation will address conversion therapy only and will not amend the Gender Recognition Act 2004 which allows for change of legal sex.

It’s also important to recognise that those who have questions about their sexual orientation will not be asking the same questions as those who are seeking advice on their transgender status. However, this doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t protect both of these groups of people from conversion therapy with our legislation.

Evidence suggests that transgender people are currently experiencing, or are targeted with, these abhorrent practices, experiencing significant negative impacts as a result. This cannot happen in our society, and that is why it is important that our ban will include attempts to change a person from or to being transgender

We know that bringing in a ban that effectively tackles all the complexities of a practice as underhanded, coercive and manipulative as conversion therapy will be challenging. But we can take confidence from the other countries such as New Zealand and Malta who have already introduced legislation. I’m encouraged that our proposals are in line with those successfully adopted in similarly minded countries as we ensure our ban is informed by global best practice.

I am in no doubt that we will deliver an effective ban on conversion therapy without unintended consequences.

The Government remains committed to preparing legislation for this Spring and introducing this as soon as Parliamentary time allows. First though, we want to hear from you on what you think of our proposals. Please respond to the consultation and have your say on the ban on conversion therapy.

Further Info:

You can respond to the consultation through either:

● The full length consultation document, supporting documents and the link to the online portal for responses here

● The Easy Read version, which can be completed then returned by email or post here