The ‘conversion therapy’ ban seems to have been quietly dropped by the Government, but at its conference last week the Labour party set out plans for a “no loopholes” trans-inclusive ban that would criminalise those who help gender-confused children accept their biological sex. The Independent has the details.
A “no loopholes”, trans-inclusive ban on conversion therapy would be introduced under a Labour Government, according to the Shadow Women and Equalities Secretary.
People responsible for anti-LGBT+ hate crime would also receive the “tougher sentences they deserve”, Anneliese Dodds said.
Concerns have been expressed in Parliament in recent weeks over the whereabouts of the Government’s draft proposals to ban conversion therapy, which seeks to suppress a person’s sexual or gender identity.
The Government first announced its intention to ban so-called ‘gay cure’ conversion therapies in 2018 as part of its LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) action plan.
It added the Bill must not inadvertently criminalise parents or clinicians who need to be able to have “legitimate conversations” with children and young adults experiencing gender-related distress.
The proposals were initially intended to be “universal” and protect all LGBT people, although in 2022 then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson defended a decision not to include trans people.
In January 2023, the Government said it would set out how it would ban conversion therapy for “everyone” – including transgender people – in England and Wales.
Ms. Dodds, speaking at the Labour Party conference in Liverpool, said: “Combating inequality is fundamental to our party, it’s why we’ll always take the right decision over the easy one and we’ll never descend into the gutter, where the Conservatives wish to take us.
“I know it’s been a difficult year for many LGBT+ people. Rising hate crime, including physical attacks, a Tory Government that treats their lives and their rights as a political football, and a Prime Minister that sees them as a cheap punchline.
“Labour will never do that. We believe everyone deserves to be accepted without exception and treated with respect and dignity.
“That’s why we will tackle the rising tide of hate with stronger laws so those who carry out anti-LGBT+ hate crime get the tougher sentences they deserve.
“We will deliver where the Conservatives have failed by bringing in a full, no loopholes, trans-inclusive ban on conversion therapy.”
Ms. Dodds also reiterated the party’s intention to modernise gender recognition legislation.
Worth reading in full.
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This is good news. The vast majority of the population are utterly sick and fed up with the alphabet menacers so this announcement should lose votes for the Liebour party.
Trebles all round.
I think they’ll still win, sadly.
Quite so. The reason being that most people are bored by politics in the first place; they draw conclusions from headlines and the headlines are written by the left. The comforting illusion that Labour’s extremism will prevent it from gaining power, therefore, is to be avoided.
It is little use, I know, advocating a Tory vote on the pragmatic grounds that wind is preferable to dysentery, but those grounds – notwithstanding all the objections which might plausibly be mustered – remain the only hope of mitigating disaster. Note that I say “mitigating” – I offer no pretence that the current Tory party offers anything more than a stay of execution. But that is all we can hope for; and what is the proposed alternative?
Wherever I find people advocating abstention or “Reform” or even direct vengeance upon the Tory party by means of a Labour vote, I discern two illusions.
First, that with massive Labour incompetence will come sufficient unrest to usher in a truly right of centre party in five years’ time. This is to underestimate the control of society which Labour plans to take; to underestimate the demographic transformation to which we are already being subjected and the sheer age of the right wing population. Let Labour in now and it’s curtains. Sternly confronted with this argument, the purists and the vengeance takers often reveal their despair, by confessing that they no longer care, they just want to kick something.
The second illusion of the purists is that even supposing a properly right wing government is ever elected again, it will have to spend years and years undoing – to the extent that it can – the damage inflicted by an all powerful left. And this is to say nothing of the conclusions which many will draw from a Labour victory, which – of course – will be that the public actually wants, desires and wishes for hard left policy.
Yes, there is a lack of hope in this message but it differs from vengeful despair. Because by holding off the very worst of disaster, it will remain possible to gather an anti-left coalition within and outside the Tory party which might then produce a sustainable form of resistance. That, I respectfully suggest, is the way – the only way which remains to us – to avert a final slide towards the total eclipse of freedom. Now, to all those who oppose this message, rather than simply downvoting it, or offering abuse, or lazily pouring scorn on our easily condemned Tory party, why not confront the argumentative heart of this case? I would be genuinely interested to read a reasoned objection.
“wind is preferable to dysentery”
God made it more sociable.
In a crowded lift even the deaf can enloy it.
So at the next election, vote wind.
In order to begin any recovery of power from the elites and accountability by them, in order to get a proper conservative, patriotic party, we first need to break the Conservative Party. If they were to regain power they would deliver five more years of the same: poor economic management, unaffordable vanity infrastructure, high taxes and decline.
If Labour rule with LibDem support it will be even more left wing and woke than on iots own.
There is no choice – we are going to have to suffer and it is all the Tories fault.
“There is no choice – we are going to have to suffer and it is all the Tories fault.”.
Yes – absolutely agree. The Conservative Party has shafted all of us since Mrs Thatcher was pushed out of the party. Unfortunately, I’ve no confidence that current Tories will offer a light touch, low tax alternative to the uniparty shit show we have now.
We can swap the cover on the phone all we want, it will offer the same functionality until it breaks.
Identify as whatever you like. Just don’t expect me to accept as true your belief that a peach is actually a cucumber, or vice versa.
And certainly don’t expect me to design my life (or that of my children, for that matter) around your crackpot beliefs.
Can’t help but think of the short, but oft screened interplay on GB News between Lee Anderson and Michelle Dewberry. She’d joked about self identifying as a cat, so playing along, Anderson tried feeding her from an unmarked tin with a spoon. Dewb’s response was “I’m not eating that, it’s bloody cat-food. Have you gone mental?”
Will labour also criminalise maths teachers who teach their pupils that 2 + 2 is 4?
Misinformation must be criminalised.
My kids in a progressive school were taught how to choose an accountant.
“Now children, when you are starting up your net-zero carbon and gender neutral green LGBTQI+++ not-for profit enterprise you will need an accountant.
To decide who to appoint, make a shortlist and ask this question ‘what is two plus two?’
Then choose the one who says ‘what figure have you got in mind?’“
To my mind, this is the ultimate demonstration of what it is to be on the Left (with some honourable exceptions): Anneliese Dodds believes that it’s her role to interfere in the most harmful way imaginable in the lives of private individuals. And not just any old individuals: she means to criminalise people who are concerned that children should be allowed to grow up before being influenced, in the most intimate and private area of their lives, by political ideologues. Anneliese Dodds and the army of meddlesome, nannying, intrusive, delusional authoritarians she represents, are the quintessence of Woke. I believe they are the greatest evil faced by mankind. An adult man feels better wearing women’s clothes? Fine by me. And adult woman wants to wear men’s clothes? Fine by me. A confused pre-pubescent child should be encouraged to undergo grotesque chemical and surgical interventions? This is not fine by me.
Blimey – deja vu
“If only we had a democracy here too and had some say.
We give all the power to a handful of political activists – Con or Lab – who have never done anything useful but jabber about ideology to get elected and get power.
The worst possible outcome of our next big election is a landslide for any party.”
This “rising tide of hate” I keep hearing about, other than people getting pissed off that trans women keep winning sporting events, is there actually any evidence for this? Do people really think it’s worse to be gay or trans in 2023 than it was, say, 50 years ago??
They just redefine hate until they get what they want.
Fascinating, and illuminating, stat turned up during the recent coverage of the autistic girl arrested for saying the short haired female police office looked like her lesbian nana.
Turns out that nearly 50% of reported ‘hate incidents’ are being reported by police officers regards comments made to them.
My word … how pathetic they are … and it reminds us to keep in mind lies, damned lies and statistics etc.
I heard Analise Dodds on the radio the other day – I was just embarrassed at her use of English. Everything was about “solidarity”. If I hear that word again from a politician (or journalist) I swear, I will burst a blood vessel.