Gay-to-straight Conversion Therapy
Debate between Geraint Davies and Sandra Osborne(11 years ago)
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Sandra Osborne
I, too, have reason to be grateful to those people.
I want to place on the record the fact that several hon. Members indicated that they wanted to attend this debate but had other commitments.
Geraint Davies (Swansea West) (Lab/Co-op)
As my hon. Friend was so kind as to mention my Bill, does she agree that our joint ambition to get rid of gay-to-straight conversion therapy needs to be embraced in a regulatory context so that all psychotherapists are regulated, which they are not at present?
Sandra Osborne
I agree, and I will go into that further. Conversion or reparative therapy is the attempt by individuals, often posing as professionals, to alter the sexuality of lesbian, gay or bisexual patients. Virtually every major national and international professional organisation has condemned the practice as ineffective and potentially extremely harmful to patients.