Phillipson Accuses Conservatives of 'No Interest' in LGBT+ People Over Conversion Therapy Law
UK equalities minister Bridget Phillipson has accused Kemi Badenoch and the Conservatives of having "no interest in supporting LGBT+ people". The accusation follows the Conservatives' decision to drop their previous backing for a planned law banning so-called conversion therapy, the attempt to change a person's sexuality or gender identity.
The government's draft conversion practices bill was published in June 2026 and was open for public consultation, a formal period in which people can submit comments, as of November. It sets out potential jail sentences of up to five years for abusive attempts to change someone's sexuality or gender identity that cause serious harm.
Badenoch, who served as equalities minister under previous Conservative governments, supported the idea of a legal ban at the time. In 2021 she said she wanted to give people "the freedom to live their life as they see fit without fear or intimidation".
The Conservative Party says it dropped its support because of concerns about the scope of the bill, particularly how it deals with gender identity. Badenoch has said the bill would "mean that parents start getting arrested for parenting their children". She made the remark in response to a journalist's question suggesting parents could be arrested if they refused to let a child identify as a cat.
UK government officials argue that such a scenario is not possible, because the bill requires abuse, serious harm and an attempt to change the person. The dispute rests on how the wording would be read.
Separately, the Policy Exchange think tank, a research organisation, published a report in early November 2026 setting out objections to the bill. The report argued that protections for non-binary identities in the bill could be so broad as to include those who are "catgender", meaning they identify as cats. It also called the bill an attack on people who do not share a "narrow set of beliefs about gender identity", and argued that conversion practices are comparatively rare and that offences within them are already covered by existing laws.
A Conservative spokesperson said Badenoch met Keira Bell against civil servants' advice.
