Minister for Equalities, Olivia Bailey MP, has confirmed the Government will publish a draft Bill to end conversion practices
Back in December, the Ban Conversion Practices coalition delivered a letter to number 10, urging the Government to make 2026 the year that conversion practices are finally made illegal.
We are pleased to receive a reply from Minister for Equalities, Olivia Bailey MP, who says that the Government “remain committed to bringing forward legislation to ban abusive conversion practices”.
She continues: “starting with publishing our draft Bill for pre-legislative scrutiny later this parliamentary session, as you have called for”.
The letter also states: “It remains the Government’s position that conversion practices are abuse, and that such practices have no place in society and must be stopped. The view that being gay or trans is an illness that needs to be cured, and the use of ‘treatments’ is absolutely abhorrent. I know that the effects of this live with people forever, and my thoughts are with those who suffered from these inhumane practices.”
Momentum is building
With the Council of Europe passing a resolution for a ban on conversion practices just last week, the time to act is now.
Now, it is time for the UK Government to take action and publish their draft Bill as soon as possible. It is time that LGBTQ+ people are protected from this abuse.
We will keep pushing for the UK Government to introduce a draft Bill to ban these harmful practices by the end of the parliamentary session, like they promised.