LONDON (Reuters) – Britain has dropped a plan to introduce legislation to ban LGBT conversion therapy and will instead review how existing law can be utilised more effectively to prevent it.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government has come under increasing pressure on the issue after former leader Theresa May vowed in 2018 to eradicate a procedure that aims to change or suppress someone’s sexual orientation or gender identity.
In May last year, when the government set out its post-pandemic parliamentary agenda, it said measures would be brought forward to prevent these “abhorrent practices which can cause mental and physical harm”, starting with a consultation on how best to protect people and how to eliminate coercive practices.
“Having explored this sensitive issue in great depth the government has decided to proceed by reviewing how existing law can be deployed more effectively to prevent this in the quickest way possible, and explore the use of other non-legislative measures,” a government spokesperson said on Thursday.
News of the government’s decision not to proceed with legislation was first reported by ITV News.
(Reporting by James Davey; Editing by David Gregorio)
