‘We don’t need to close down therapeutic support; we need to open it up’

23 November 2021

The government has promised to ban what it calls ‘conversion therapy’.

Its proposals will mean that conversations aimed at helping someone to change sexual orientation or gender identity will risk criminal sanctions unless a formal consent form has been signed in advance.

The government also proposes that children will not be able to consent to such conversations.

In the video below, Andrea Williams, chief executive of Christian Concern, alongside other ex-LGBT voices, explain why this ban is unnecessary in principle.

 

“There is no need for a conversion therapy ban,” Andrea explains. “What we have existing in law is sufficient. … If this ban goes through, these kinds of people are going to have real difficulty accessing this change. In a world where are children are increasingly identifying as sexually fluid, as ‘other sexualities’, we don’t need to be closing down therapy; we need to be opening it right up. Any therapist that I’ve ever met is there to serve the client that wants that hope and change in their life.”

A group of former LGBT-voices joined together outside Parliament on Tuesday 23 November 2021 to protest the proposed ban. You can also watch more videos below from some of them who have received help and support to leave same-sex attraction and transgenderism behind them. This is the kind of support that risks being criminalised if a ban is imposed.

Kiran from X-Out-Loud shares why she’s against the government’s proposal to ban what it calls ‘conversion therapy’: “I’m here today to stand against the conversion [therapy] ban in the UK. There are people like me who have changed and have come out of the LGBT community…we also deserve support and respect.”

You can also watch a longer interview with Kiran on X-Out-Loud.

Rob from X-Out-Loud shares why he opposes a government ban on what it is calling ‘conversion therapy’: “It’s important that the government listens to people looking for help because people have the right to shape their lives as they wish. This proposed ban is actually a form of discrimination against LGBT people themselves – because what happens if they want to leave it behind?”

Tia from X-Out-Loud shares why she does not support a ban on so-called ‘conversion therapy’: “Everything is possible with God, and we are the evidence of that change. … Why can we not have the freedom to choose how we want to live our life? A ban would take that freedom away.”

You can also watch a longer interview with Tia on X-Out-Loud.

Find out more at X-Out-Loud.

It is important for Christians to oppose this ban in principle and to point out the problems with its proposals.

Even though the consultation has now closed, you can still make your voice heard by writing to your MP. You can find more on our resource page to help you understand why the government’s proposal should be opposed in its entirety.

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