The British government published a draft Conversion Practices Bill on Thursday that would make it a criminal offence in England and Wales to perform abusive acts aimed at changing a person’s sexual orientation or transgender identity. Perpetrators could face up to five years in prison and unlimited fines. The legislation, which fulfils a Labour manifesto commitment, defines conversion practices as conduct that causes serious harm and is driven by the belief that LGBT+ identities are defective. It explicitly exempts legitimate healthcare, explorative conversations and the expression of religious beliefs, setting what ministers call a “high threshold for criminality”. The bill follows years of stalled promises: a ban was first pledged in 2018 but was repeatedly delayed under Conservative governments.

Viewed from Mexico City, a parallel legal development took a different route. The Mexican Supreme Court recently resolved a constitutional challenge (AI 4/2026) by invalidating two provisions that had partially shielded parents, guardians or consenting adults from criminal liability for subjecting minors or adults to so-called conversion therapies. The court held that neither parental authority nor individual consent can justify interventions designed to suppress essential aspects of a person’s identity. The ruling placed the dignity and equality of the person at the centre, contrasting with the reasoning of the US Supreme Court in Chiles v. Salazar, where the majority found that a state ban could restrict the free speech of mental health professionals by regulating the content of conversations. In Washington, the court left states with broad latitude to permit or prohibit such practices, framing the issue primarily as one of professional speech and state regulatory power.

In London, the government cited 195 reported cases of conversion practices over three years, with victims describing beatings, rape, forced exorcisms and psychological abuse. Anti-abuse charity Galop reported that 76 per cent of cases were initiated by family members, including 63 per cent by parents. Survivor Matthew Hyndman, who was told to publicly repent for being gay or leave his evangelical community, welcomed the bill as a “clear signal” that LGBT+ people are “not broken”. The draft law applies only to England and Wales; Scotland and Northern Ireland retain competence to legislate separately. The European Union, lacking legal authority to impose a bloc-wide ban, has said it will limit itself to recommending that member states prohibit the practices.

In Kenya, where gender-based violence remains pervasive, the response has taken a different institutional form. Nandi County recently partnered with private firms to open a Gender Based Violence and Mental Health Clinic at Nandi Hills County Hospital, offering integrated medical care, trauma counselling and temporary shelter. The initiative reflects a public-health framing that treats violence against women and girls as a crisis requiring comprehensive rehabilitation, not only criminal justice measures. While the clinic does not specifically target conversion practices, it underscores a broader recognition across regions that identity-based harm demands both legal prohibition and accessible survivor services. The UK bill will now enter parliamentary scrutiny, with no date yet set for a final vote.