Updates

The latest draft was updated on the 12th February, detailed guidance will be published on the 16th February. 

You can see the final published bill from 5pm on 23rd Feb 2024 here: https://bills.parliament.uk/bills/3545/publications

Background

I am Lloyd Russell-Moyle MP. At the start of each parliament the government lay down the bills which they will present that year to become laws, at the same time MPs who are not part of the government from all parties take part in the Private Members Bill ballot, this is a lottery to secure the first 7 (often more) bills from non-government MPs which will each get a time to be debated and voted on. I came 5th in the ballot and therefore will get to present a bill for its second reading (first debate) on the 1st March 2024. 

After discussions with my local constituents, campaign organisations, my office and friends and family I decided to bring forward a bill on Conversion Practices. These are practices which aim to change someone’s sexual orientation or change someone from or to being transgender. 

These practices are traumatic and the government themselves wanted to ban these but didn’t include it in the Kings Speech (opening of parliament). The issues had been put in the too difficult box by all sides, we had got obsessed with defining controversial topics and we had obsessed in making the perfect the enemy of the good. 

I also recognise that many of us have got over passionate in arguing about these issues in the past (myself included) and this is my attempt to seek consensus not division. I asked 10 Conservative MPs including the chairs of three select committees to work with me to draft and bring this bill into the House of Commons. 

The Bill I have drafted has not been written by any campaign or external organisation, but I have reached out to many organisations from all backgrounds to try and draft something that everyone can agree on. I am not aiming to get us to agree on all the problems (different people see different problems in the current practice) but no one is happy with the current practices and lots of people are being left traumatised whilst conversion happens in the UK. 

To ensure that we get the right bill, which doesn’t infringe on Human Rights, doesn’t aim to regulate free speech, religion or family life, but does aim to set a framework of practices which we believe are not acceptable I have focused on the intent, mens rea or as I have called it the predetermined purpose of changing people. 

I am still very much drafting this bill, but in an aim to get as many comments as possible I publish below the text of the bill (also downloadable in PDF) and include a contact box on this website. If you have comments which are constructive from whatever direction, please send them in. We will not take every suggestion, but we are open to all ideas. 

Yours

Lloyd Russell-Moyle MP

P.S. I am dyslexic, this is the first draft which will be checked by the House of Commons clerks before being presented to the House – feedback on spelling and grammar always welcome, but please be kind.