UK equality watchdog suggests delaying trans conversion therapy ban in “deeply shocking” report
Activists are questioning whether or not the UK’s Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is “truly fit for purpose” after it suggested a “differentiated approach” to a trans conversion therapy ban.
In a report published on 26 January in response to the UK government’s plans to legislate a conversion therapy ban, the human rights watchdog said the consultation does not “address the possible need to consider a differentiated approach in relation to sexual orientation and being transgender so as to ensure, in particular, that clinicians and therapists are not prohibited from providing appropriate care and support for individuals with gender dysphoria.” The EHRC, which aims to promote and uphold equality laws in the UK and is funded by the UK government’s Equalities Office, also criticised what it called the “lack of evidence about conversion therapy in relation to being transgender,” and concluded that “these matters require further careful and detailed consideration before legislative proposals are finalised and the implications of them can be fully understood.” Conversion therapy is most commonly described as “practices, behaviours, or words aiming to modify or repress” a person’s “sexual orientation or identity.” It has been widely condemned by health experts, with some comparing it to torture.
Among these are the World Health Organisation, World Psychiatric Association and the United Nations. Despite promising to ban the practice in the UK since 2018, the government is yet to do so.
Its current consultation on the matter runs until 4 February 2022, after which a partial ban is expected to be implemented that will allow those over the age of 18 to consent to it.
