We cannot afford Labour's Conversion Practices Bill

Max Thompson, Campaigns Officer

6 November 2026

Cruel and archaic conversion practices that try to force someone who is gay to be straight are, of course, abhorrent. That is why they are already illegal.

But, as is becoming increasingly common, the Labour government is obsessing over legislating for issues that are not actually a problem, and its Conversion Practices Bill is a prime example.

Under the draft Conversion Practices Bill, parents, therapists, and religious leaders could face up to five years behind bars for well-intentioned conversations with gender-confused children, or for sharing their faith's teachings on sex, gender, and marriage with their congregations.

Parents could be imprisoned if they try to dissuade their children from embarking on dangerous, irreversible, and life-changing medical pathways. The bill is arguably one of the most illiberal and invasive pieces of legislation ever to come before MPs.

Government figures show that Labour's Conversion Practices Bill could cost businesses and taxpayers up to £100 million over a decade. Businesses and taxpayers are already facing enough pressure in the current economic climate.

The official impact assessment acknowledges that the bill is likely to have a "negative" impact on private firms and public sector bodies, which will have to train staff in how it works. But even that estimate may be too low: the costs to police, courts, and prisons have not yet been calculated.

The assessment also claims that the bill could be worth £783 million to society over ten years, because it would mean fewer transgender and gay people suffer from depression. As Maya Forstater, chief executive of Sex Matters, has pointed out, that figure rests on highly uncertain assumptions.

The report admits that the evidence base on conversion practices is "relatively limited". It also relies on a Stonewall-commissioned survey, which asked respondents whether they had been told to take "purifying" substances or had received "pseudo-scientific" counselling, to estimate that between 75,000 and 93,000 people in England and Wales experience conversion practices each year.

The assessment says that the bill's impact on business is "likely to be negative", and it identifies familiarisation costs for private education and healthcare providers, religious groups, and LGBT+ organisations.

It estimates an initial £45.8 million in training costs for the police, the Crown Prosecution Service, the courts, the NHS, the education sector, and social services. A Victim Support Service would cost a further £240,000 over three years, while one-off familiarisation costs for the private sector are forecast to reach £13.6 million.

We simply cannot afford this bill.

Read more in the Daily Mail and sign our petition calling on the Prime Minister to drop the bill.