Following an announcement in the Queen’s Speech that the UK Government will legislate to ban conversion therapy, Doug Beattie MC MLA said:
“Conversion therapy has no place in our society. It is a vile, harmful practice and LGBTQ citizens across the United Kingdom deserve robust protections from it. It is welcome that legislation was announced in the Queen’s Speech today and that it comes so soon after a UUP motion in the NI Assembly supporting a ban was passed.
“However we will of course look to see what comes next. The LGBTQ community have been waiting a long time for this legislation and the UK Government have been promising a ban for a long time. It is important that they move quickly to bring forward legislation and do not simply engage in kicking the can down the road. The ban must also be meaningful. It is important that those who are concerned about how this will impact on faith have those fears allayed. That does not and should not diminish the right of LGBTQ people to be protected from harmful practices.
“While this issue is devolved, the announcement that the UK Government is moving forward should provide new impetus to the Communities Minister to bring forward legislation to make a ban in Northern Ireland a reality before the end of this Assembly mandate.”