Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Conversion Therapy

Thursday 22 April 2021 · 3 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 3 Not answered 0

Key points

  • The Church of England's General Synod passed a resolution in 2017 calling on the Government to end conversion therapy.
  • The Prime Minister remains committed to prohibiting harmful and unnecessary practices in conversion therapy without criminalising clergy and Church members for non-coercive pastoral support.
  • The Church believes it is possible to end conversion therapy without outlawing prayer and private conversations requested by individuals.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Peter Gibson
Religion & Faith
Context

The Church of England committed in 2017 to ending conversion therapy but there have been concerns about the progress made.

Question

What steps the Church of England is taking to implement its 2017 commitment to end conversion therapy?

Answer from Andrew Selous

The Church of England's General Synod passed a resolution in 2017 calling on the Government to end conversion therapy, to prevent vulnerable people from being subjected to potential spiritual abuse. The Church remains committed to this and will work with the Government on how it can most effectively be framed.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific actions by the Church of England are not mentioned

Was this summary accurate? Tell us

How accurate was this summary? (1 = poor, 5 = spot on)

Q2 Aaron Bell
Women & Equalities Religion & Faith
Context

The previous resolution from the General Synod in 2017 called for an end to conversion therapy. There are ongoing discussions about the Church's position on various identities and orientations.

Question

Do the commissioners agree that the Church must reject any assumption that any one identity or orientation is preferable to another and that any one-directional pursuit of a particular orientation amounts to conversion therapy?

Answer from Andrew Selous

I thank my hon. Friend for making that point. The Prime Minister remains resolutely committed to prohibiting the imposition of any harmful and unnecessary practice in this area, without criminalising clergy and Church members for non-coercive pastoral support that individuals ask for.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific stance on rejecting assumptions about identities or orientations is not clearly addressed

Was this summary accurate? Tell us

How accurate was this summary? (1 = poor, 5 = spot on)

Q3 Peter Gibson
Women & Equalities Religion & Faith
Context

There are debates around balancing religious practices with the ban on conversion therapy, especially in terms of prayer and conversations that individuals seek.

Question

I thank my hon. Friend for his answer. However, may I urge him to do all he can in the upcoming discourse on this important ban to which the Government have committed to ensure that religious freedom and banning this abuse is not presented as a binary choice? Does he acknowledge that many of Christian faith and other faiths want to see an end to this abuse?

Answer from Andrew Selous

The Church believes that it is possible to end conversion therapy without outlawing prayer and private conversations with clergy and Church members that an individual has requested. The Church has not requested an opt-out from the proposed law and will look carefully at the detail when the legislation is published.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific efforts to avoid framing religious freedom versus ending conversion therapy as a binary choice are not detailed

Was this summary accurate? Tell us

How accurate was this summary? (1 = poor, 5 = spot on)