Equalities Minister Kemi Badenoch Delays Ban On Conversion Therapy
Kemi Badenoch, the UK's new equalities minister, has paused the work to ban conversion therapy since she took over the role last week.
It isn't unusual for a new minister to review actions before committing to a policy, the change in personnel means a further delay to outlawing the practice.
According to ITV News, Ms. Badenoch's predecessor, Nadhim Zahawi, agreed that a Joint Committee of MPs and Lords would scrutinize a bill next year to finally introduce a ban.
The idea was to expedite the legislation during the fourth session of parliament, due to begin in the spring. However, those plans are now on hold until the new equalities minister has agreed to them. There is growing frustration that a ban still hasn't been enacted four years after Theresa May first promised that the practice would be ended.
Under Boris Johnson's government, the ban was watered down by removing trans conversion therapy from the scope of any legislation, only including conversion therapy focused on “changing” someone's sexuality.
Ms. Badenoch has already clashed with elements of the LGBTQ+ community since she was appointed last week, accusing some campaigners of using equality as a “sword” to attack others rather than a “shield” to protect their rights. She has previously been accused of having an ambiguous position on banning conversion therapy.
The chair of the Ban Conversion Therapy Coalition, Jayne Ozanne, said in a statement: “I despair at yet another delay by this government - who have told us for years that they are working 'at pace', whilst countless other countries have just got on and banned it! We know that the majority of the public join us in wanting a full ban and, like us, cannot understand why any minister truly committed to protecting the LGBT+ community would want to delay it.”
In response, a government spokesperson in the equalities department said, “The minister for women and equalities will consider the responses to the public consultation on conversion practices before responding in due course. We have taken steps to ensure that victims of conversion practices have access to the support they need through a new service which launched in September.”
Read related myGwork articles here:
Liz Truss Campaign Suggests She 'Hates' Policy Banning Conversion Therapy
Layla Moran MP: “Anything Less Than A Full Ban On Conversion Therapy Is Unacceptable”
Queen's Speech Expected To Confirm Conversion Therapy Ban – But Not For Trans People
Conversion Therapy Is Torture And Must Be Banned For Everyone
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