Victoria’s ‘gold standard’ conversion therapy ban should be a red flag for lawmakers

If you want to know what LGBT activists have set their sights on in conversion therapy legislation, look no further than the Australian state of Victoria.

Its recent law, introduced in 2021, has been described as “best international practice” by Stonewall’s Head of Policy and the “gold standard” by the Chair of the Ban Conversion Therapy campaign group.

With a penalty of up to ten years in prison and a maximum fine of over £100,000, it would surprise most people to find out what is actually outlawed.

The Christian Institute, which is behind the Let Us Pray campaign, has produced a short booklet examining the Victoria law. It has been sent to more than 1,000 parliamentarians warning of the difficulties if a similar law was introduced here.

The report highlights how the Victoria ban puts parents and ordinary church workers at risk of prosecution.

Churches

The official guidance describes examples of what might be considered an illegal practice under the law.

It explains: “Conversion practices and experiences vary widely. Practices ultimately aim to change or suppress someone’s sexual orientation and gender identity. This could be through mixed-orientation marriage, celibacy, or abstinence, as well as not affirming someone’s gender identity or insisting that someone does not change their gender.”

Under this extremely broad definition, it’s easy to see how normal pastoral conversations could be under threat.

For example, a church member comes to the pastor seeking help because he is experiencing same-sex attraction. He asks the pastor to read the Bible and pray with him. The pastor encourages him to remain faithful to God and they discuss passages about God’s design for marriage being between a man and a woman. According to the guidance in Victoria, this would be viewed as conversion therapy.

Prayer

The Act expressly states that the ban includes “carrying out a religious practice”, such as “a prayer based practice”.

According to the guidance, a prayer is likely to be illegal if it includes asking “for a person to not act on their attractions”; talking “about a person’s brokenness or need to repent”; or asking “for long-term celibacy”.

The Christian Institute points out that under this guidance Christian ministers could even be prosecuted for encouraging congregants to say the Lord’s Prayer.

The Lord’s Prayer includes the line “forgive us our sins”. But it would be illegal to pray even this, as it contravenes the guidance that you cannot pray about someone’s need to repent. “Lead us not into temptation” would also be prohibited as it breaches the guidance that you cannot pray for a person to not act on their attractions.

Other practices which could be considered illegal could include suggesting to someone that “their gender identity is not real”.

So what can pastors actually pray and say without breaking the law in Victoria?

The guidance lists “ways to continue practicing your faith without causing harm”. These include reassuring LGBT people that “everyone has a different path” and that they are “perfect as they are”.

This undermines the very foundations of the Christian faith, which recognises that no-one is perfect and that we are all in need of forgiveness through Jesus Christ.

Youth groups

Church youth groups are also targeted under the Victoria ban. Under the guidance, “using a youth group session to provide ‘support’ through group prayer to a young person to help them fight a desire to act on their feelings of same-sex attraction”.

Youth groups are an important space for young people to explore the Bible and learn how to live it out practically. They are a space for teenagers to share their struggles and receive support in the form of prayer and friendship.

The Christian Institute warns: “These everyday, harmless interactions must not become a battleground in which activists who oppose church teaching can call in the police to adjudicate on the content of people’s prayers.”

Parents

Families are also in the firing line. The guidance states: “Practices that would be considered illegal under the Act include: a parent... refusing to support their child’s request for medical treatment that will prevent physical changes from puberty that do not align with the child’s gender identity”.

The Christian Institute commented: “The use of puberty-blocking drugs on gender-distressed children is very controversial. In up to 90% of cases, children with gender dysphoria find it resolves during puberty. But puberty blockers stop that very process.”

The report concludes: “Parents should not be criminalised for refusing to support the use of experimental and potentially dangerous drugs on their children.”

Parents feel trapped

A mother of a gender-confused teen living in Victoria penned a lengthy letter expressing her outrage at the ban.

She said the Government passed a law that “amounts to child abuse” and has called for an “immediate inquiry into this Orwellian law”.

She revealed that her daughter’s school had, on more than one occasion, allowed the gender-confused teen to see a doctor about transitioning without parental consent or notification.

The mother asked:

“Why are children being coached to hide things from and lie to their parents? What if unforeseen complications arise? What if they self-diagnose gender dysphoria and seek treatment with cross sex hormones and surgery and then go on to de-transition a few years later because they then regret that decision? This horrifies me.

“Teenagers are not allowed to drink alcohol, or get face tattoos, or rent a car, or vote. If they are not considered physically, emotionally, or intellectually mature enough to make these decisions, how can they be considered mature enough to make life changing decisions such as cross-sex hormone treatment without parental knowledge, counsel, or consent?”

The Australian Daily Mail also reported on the devastating impact the ban was having on parents.

The journalist wrote: “A new Victorian law which forces mothers and fathers to accept their children's desire to change gender has left distraught parents fearing prosecution if they do anything to try to prevent potentially harmful and irreversible treatment.”

The article continued: “Many parents feel trapped, unable to do anything to prevent their children pursuing potentially irreversible and harmful changes - from chest-binding to taking hormone blockers and ultimately sex-change surgery.”

The Christian Institute instructed Jason Coppel KC to analyse the Victoria law in light of the European Convention on Human Rights and he concluded that “it could breach four fundamental human rights”.

The CI concluded: “Mainstream Christian views on sexual ethics, and feminist beliefs about gender, have been recognised by the courts as ‘worthy of respect in a democratic society’. This means they are protected by equality and human rights law. They cannot and must not be criminalised.”

The example of Victoria should be a red flag to policymakers. Politicians should be looking at this real-life example of ‘conversion therapy’ legislation and admitting it goes well beyond the sort of well-meaning intervention they have been sold.