The government’s first LGBTQ+ conference is facing a mass boycott over its U-turn on banning ‘conversion therapy’ in the UK.
On 31 March, a leaked document seen by ITV News confirmed that the UK government was no longer planning to ban so-called ‘conversion therapy’ despite promising to do so since 2018.
However, mere hours after the news broke, the government made a U-turn on its decision in the wake of public outcry at it – including from fellow Conservative politicians.
Despite this, the renewed plans reportedly do not currently cover banning the use of the practice on trans people – something which a statement released by the government on 4 April appeared to confirm. “Recognising the complexity of issues and need for further careful thought, we will carry out separate work to consider the issue of transgender conversion therapy further,” it stated.