Bill would outlaw aspects of ‘loving parenting’

The Northern Ireland Assembly is taking steps towards new conversion therapy legislation that could result in jail time for “offending” individuals.

The Conversion Practices (Criminalisation) Bill, introduced by Alliance Party Deputy Leader Eóin Tennyson, passed 46 to 29 with 15 abstentions on 28 September. The bill will now proceed to detailed scrutiny.

According to the proposed legislation, the bill “aims to clearly signal that practices attempting to change or suppress an individual’s sexual orientation and/or gender identity are wrong, that they are harmful to the individuals subjected to them and to society as a whole.”