It’s been two years to the day since the Tory government said they’d ban conversion therapy
Two years since the government vowed to ban it, conversion therapy is still legal in the UK. (Juan Carlos Lucas/NurPhoto via Getty)
It’s been two years exactly since the government committed to banning conversion therapy, yet the traumatising practice is still legal in the UK.
So-called gay conversion therapy is often compared to torture and has been linked to higher risks of depression, suicide, and drug addiction.
All major UK health organisations have denounced the practice as damaging pseudoscience, yet while the Tories pledged to “eradicate” the cruel and traumatic practice on July 3, 2018, there has been no measurable progress.
LGBT+ and human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell said in a statement: “On this day two years ago, the UK government promised to outlaw gay conversion therapy but still no legislation has been brought forward.
“We’ve had rumours that it will happen but no details or timetable.”
In June, 2020, equalities minster Liz Truss said she would “shortly be bringing forward plans” to end the horrific practice, and added that she was “closely following” conversion therapy bans in countries which the UK is shamefully lagging behind, like Albania and Germany.
Tatchell described the so-called therapy as “unethical, ineffective and harmful”, and added: “No one should be told their sexual orientation or gender identity is something that is flawed and requires changing.
“The practice is based on an assumption that being lesbian, gay, bisexual or trans is a defect or illness that can be ‘cured’… Gay conversion treatments have been condemned by all major UK medical, psychological and counselling organisations.
“They attempt to shame a person into denying a core part of who they are, and this can have a seriously damaging impact on their mental health and wellbeing.
“The government has said this is a complex issue and they may be right but Germany, parts of the US and Australia have managed to ban it.
“While Boris Johnson and Liz Truss procrastinate, people continue to be damaged by this quack practice.”
