1. If she will make an assessment of the potential impact of her timetable for bringing forward legislative proposals to ban conversion practices on affected people.
Conversion practices are abuse, they cause long-lasting harm, and they have no place in our society. We will bring our comprehensive, trans-inclusive ban on conversion practices before the House as soon as possible.
LGBTQ rights campaigners have warned that the Government’s continued delay on banning conversion practices is dangerous and leaves vulnerable people without protection. Every month of delay leaves people exposed to practices that the Government themselves have said are abusive. Will the Minister now set out a clear timeline and give a firm commitment that the Government will not drag their heels on this any longer?
As I have just said, conversion practices are abusive and we will ban them. All LGBT people deserve to live freely and without fear, shame or discrimination. This legislation is a priority for the Government, as set out in the King’s Speech.
I thank the Minister for her answer. The recent BBC report that more than 250 people were subjected to electric shocks in NHS hospitals between 1965 and 1973, in an attempt to change their sexual preferences and gender identity, serves as a reminder of the urgent need for us to legislate in this area, and I am proud that the Government have committed to a trans-inclusive ban on conversion practices. Can she assure me that the Government will legislate as swiftly as possible, and will she meet me to discuss this further?
Let me be clear: being gay or trans is not an illness that needs to be cured. The so-called treatments reported by the BBC are abhorrent, and my thoughts are with anyone who suffered. Abusive conversion practices are still happening today, and we will bring forward our draft legislation to ban them as soon as possible. I would of course be delighted to meet my hon. Friend.
The Health Secretary’s puberty blocker trial will stop the natural puberty of many young lesbians, putting them on a pathway to irreversible changes and a lifetime of medicalisation. What are the Minister’s plans to stop this state-sanctioned conversion therapy?
Young people with gender incongruence need access to high-quality, safe and effective care. We are following the Cass review, which was clear that the evidence on the care for these children is lacking and proposed this research to help provide it. We are now setting up clinical trials, as recommended by Baroness Cass, to build the evidence base that we need to support vulnerable young people.
LGBT+ communities, and particularly trans people, have many reasons to be fearful at the moment. Even though the Government have committed to delivering a conversion therapy Bill, trust is at an all-time low. Is the Bill on target to come before the House in this Session? If so, will the Minister outline the details of pre-legislative scrutiny and what involvement there will be from the LGBT+ community?
I recognise the significant anxiety felt by many trans people at the moment, and I want to be clear, as the Supreme Court was, that protections for trans people are enshrined in law. Trans people deserve to live their lives with dignity and respect, and without shame. We are committed to delivering the trans-inclusive ban on conversion practices, per the King’s Speech, as soon as possible, alongside strengthening LGBT hate crime laws and improving trans healthcare.
2. What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to promote equality as part of the Government mission entitled “Break Down Barriers to Opportunity”.
Background should never be a barrier to getting on. That is why we are expanding Best Start family hubs, rolling out free breakfast clubs, expanding childcare and delivering on our moral mission to tackle child poverty by scrapping the two-child limit, creating a fairer Britain where every child has the opportunity to succeed.
Last week, I met the 93% Club to hear more about its vital work to address the impact of social class on young people’s career and life chances. I welcome our Labour Government’s steps to widen opportunities for those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, such as the match funding for criminal barrister pupillages. What other action is this Labour Government taking to level the playing field, so that young people in Luton South and South Bedfordshire, and across the country, can access opportunities, regardless of their background?
I am grateful to my hon. Friend, who has long campaigned on these issues. The central driving mission of this Labour Government is to ensure that background is no barrier to success. That is why we are expanding free school meals, lifting the two-child benefit limit, introducing a new youth guarantee and bringing in maintenance grants for disadvantaged students. Of course, we are also rolling out free breakfast clubs, and it was brilliant to visit Denbigh primary school with her to see one open.
Earlier this year, I attended an amazing event at the Dorset Museum called “In My Shoes” for care-experienced young people, who explained the importance of making care experience a protected characteristic, as we have done in many councils, including mine in Mid Dorset and North Poole. Will the Minister take the same step with Cabinet colleagues, and consider making care experience a protected characteristic?
The hon. Lady raises an important issue, and we are doing lots of work across Government to make sure we have better outcomes for care-experienced young people, who are sadly more likely than other young people to experience mental health difficulties or even end up in prison. I lead that work together with the Deputy Prime Minister to make sure that the voices of care leavers are heard. It is why, for example, with the introduction of new targeted maintenance grants and the wider reforms that we are bringing to the higher education system, we are working right across Government to make sure that all Departments are pulling together.