Oral Answers to Questions Debate

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Department: Cabinet Office

Oral Answers to Questions

Kate Osborne Excerpts
Wednesday 30th March 2022

(2 years, 7 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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The Minister for Women and Equalities was asked—
Kate Osborne Portrait Kate Osborne (Jarrow) (Lab)
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1. What the Government’s timetable is for publishing a Bill on banning conversion therapy.

Andrew Gwynne Portrait Andrew Gwynne (Denton and Reddish) (Lab)
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4. What the Government’s timetable is for publishing a Bill on banning conversion therapy.

Mike Freer Portrait The Minister for Equalities (Mike Freer)
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With your permission, Mr Speaker, I would like to begin by acknowledging the enormously personal statement that my hon. Friend the Member for Bridgend (Dr Wallis) made this morning. I hope I speak for the whole House in sending our support. It is so important that people are free to be safe to be themselves, whoever they are and whoever they love.

We remain wholly committed to bringing forward proposals to ban conversion therapy practices. We recently concluded a consultation period on the proposals being analysed, based on which we will be developing legislation to be brought forward later this spring.

Kate Osborne Portrait Kate Osborne
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My best wishes also go to the hon. Member for Bridgend (Dr Wallis). The Minister will be aware that the Cabinet Office recently tendered a contract for the provision of a conversion therapy victim support service. Does he agree that including a consent loophole in the Government’s proposals to ban conversion therapy will allow some of its worst practitioners off the hook, inevitably creating more victims who will need support?