Majority of Scots when it comes to banning conversion therapy. A new poll showed that only five percent of the country, as well as five percent of nationalists, considered the issue a priority.
When asked to select their top four priorities from a range of topics in a ranking that included the NHS, social housing and social care, the ban on conversion therapy ranked 16th out of 16 options. It is a controversial law that could prohibit the content of prayers and discussions in a family home.
Critics claimed that after the launch of the first consultation, it could also be outside Holyrood’s legislation and was postponed until next year to resolve some issues. The Christian Institute claimed it could make it illegal for parents to withhold consent for their children to be given puberty blockers.
Commonly understood as a process in which religious groups, families or charities use ineffective and harmful methods to change a person’s attraction to the same sex, the SNP wanted to make it illegal to also question a person’s self-identification in relation to gender. While the ban on the conversion of gays, lesbians or bisexuals is popular, some fear that the inclusion of trans people ignores the reality of people with gender dysphoria and criminalizes parents who want to challenge a child’s belief in a different gender.
Simon Calvert, deputy director of the Christian Institute, welcomed the voting results. He said: “The new poll shows that voters rank the ban last in terms of government priorities . Despite years of campaigning by activists, the public is by no means convinced of the need for a comprehensive ban on conversion therapy. The fact is that gays and transsexuals are rightfully already fully protected from verbal and physical abuse, so there is simply no need for a new law.
Such a ban would be a radical and unwelcome new development in Scottish law, allowing bureaucrats to tell Christians exactly how to pray. This would effectively make the gender mistake a crime. And it would criminalize parents who try to prevent their children from being prescribed puberty blockers.
The Scottish government has already postponed its plans for a law. You should read the room and completely abandon the bill. They should focus on the big issues instead of being captured by activists with repressive agendas.