An open letter has been written to politicians in Northern Ireland urging them to reject a bill aimed at criminalising abusive conversion therapy practices.
The open letter, written jointly by the heads of pressure groups Anglican Mainstream and the Marriage, Sex and Culture Group, began with a challenge to supporters of the bill to find a single case of a person suffering abuse that was not protected by existing laws.
It then went on to point out the severe weaknesses in the “evidence” provided by the bill's promoters to support their claim that a ban is necessary.
“A Study of Conversion Practices in Northern Ireland” was produced in 2024 and is the only piece of evidence submitted in the sponsor’s memorandum on the bill. That study was made up of just 10 interviews, with even the authors conceding that its conclusions “do not represent findings that can be generalised”.
The open letter cited Freedom of Information requests conducted by The Christian Institute, which found that among all Health and Social Care Trusts in Northern Ireland, only Belfast had received any complaints relating to conversion therapy and even then, just a handful. Furthermore, even when there were complaints, the Trust had found no concerns relating to “clinical treatment and care”.
The open letter also raised concerns that a ban on conversion therapy could potentially criminalise parents or religious leaders who may not wish to affirm the gender identity or sexuality professed by their child, friend or parishioner.
While the proposed bill offers some protection for those registered with the General Medical Council, the Health and Care Professions Council, the General Pharmaceutical Council or the Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland, no such protections are offered to parents or pastors.
Getting to the core of the issue, the open letter noted that the bill “protects help in one direction and criminalises it in the other”.
The letter was signed by Dr Lisa Nolland, CEO, of the Marriage, Sex and Culture Group and by Canon Dr Chris Sugden, Chairman of Anglican Mainstream.
