Anneliese Dodds, the shadow secretary of state for women and equalities, has called upon Members of Parliament, including equalities minister Kemi Badenoch, to issue apologies for neglecting to include a ban on conversion therapy in the recent King’s Speech. Despite longstanding assurances from the Conservative Party regarding the introduction of such a ban, the LGBTQ+ community was left disappointed as the speech made no mention of it. The King’s Speech outlines the legislative agenda the government intends to pursue in the upcoming parliamentary session.
The omission of the ban was met with strong criticism from LGBTQ+ organizations and activists, who characterized it as “frightful negligence” and “heart-breakingly disappointing.” Dodds asserted that Conservative MPs and ministers, including Kemi Badenoch and Michelle Donelan, who had pledged to implement the ban, should offer apologies for this “dismal failure.”
Dodds emphasized that the lack of progress towards a ban represents a betrayal of all LGBT+ individuals at risk of enduring the abhorrent treatment of conversion therapy. She stated, “It’s clear as day that conversion practices are abuse and should be outlawed, but the Conservatives have failed to do so for half a decade. Labour would bring in a full, no-loopholes ban on these practices.”
Tory MP Caroline Nokes, who had previously criticized the government for backtracking on its commitments to the LGBTQ+ community, expressed her disappointment at the missed opportunity to establish comprehensive legislation to combat conversion therapy. Nokes affirmed that conversion practices are abhorrent and must be eradicated.
John Nicholson, the Culture, Media, and Sport spokesman for the Scottish National Party at Westminster, branded conversion therapy as “abuse.” He criticized the Tories for reneging on their promises regarding a ban and emphasized the harm inflicted by conversion therapy, particularly on vulnerable individuals.
While parliamentary secretary for the Cabinet Office, Alex Burghart, assured that the government remains committed to addressing the issue of conversion therapy, he noted that its absence from the King’s Speech does not imply its exclusion. Burghart pointed out that the King’s Speech concluded with the monarch’s statement that “Other measures will be laid before you.”
A government spokesperson reiterated the government’s stance against conversion therapy, emphasizing that no one in the country should suffer harm or harassment for their identity. They stated that attempts at so-called conversion therapy are abhorrent and that the government is carefully considering this complex issue.