Sex Matters responds to Stonewall’s ludicrous “conversion” claims

As Stonewall intensifies its lobbying for a broad ban on so-called ‘conversion therapy’, its latest polling, which paints a picture of mass abuse against LGBTQ+ individuals, continues to draw increasingly sceptical attention.

We noted a fortnight ago that these numbers don’t withstand scrutiny. The claims of an alleged epidemic of abuse begin to look seriously flimsy when placed under the cold light of hard evidence.

Now, Sex Matters, a legally-focused ‘sex realist’ campaign group, has given its review. In a blog post titled ‘Exercising caution over Stonewall’s exorcism claims’, the group challenges not only the survey’s implausible figures, but also the ideological fervour with which they are being used to promote legislation that risks criminalising innocent, everyday actions.

Stonewall’s survey, commissioned from polling firm Opinium, purports to show that nearly one-third of LGBTQ+ respondents in Britain have been subjected to attempts to change or suppress their identity. Even more eyebrow-raising, one in ten claims to have been exorcised. Among trans-identifying individuals, the figure rises to a surreal 30 per cent.

Sex Matters says the numbers strain credulity. “Are we really to believe that nearly a third of trans-identifying people in the UK – a country where official policy and public messaging have leaned heavily towards affirmation – have been exorcised in the last five years?” they ask.

In a country saturated with diversity training, rainbow lanyards and gender-affirming policies, the claim seems not just unlikely, but fantastical.

More to the point, the survey deliberately blurs the distinction between serious abuses, such as verbal and physical abuse, and ordinary forms of disagreement or belief. The result is not a serious effort to define harm, but a campaign to silence dissent.

In Stonewall’s view, ‘conversion practices’ can include anything from prayer to sexual violence. As Sex Matters says, it is a “capacious term that lumps together very different things”. Indeed, it could easily be stretched to include a parent suggesting their child should wait before socially transitioning, or a conversation with a Christian friend who is seeking support to live faithfully.

Adopting such elastic definitions into law risks sweeping up consensual conversations, pastoral support, and basic freedoms of speech and belief. With the government still promising draft legislation on conversion practices, the group urges “evidence, not ideology” when considering a new law.

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See also: FOI responses debunk claims of ‘conversion therapy’ problem in Northern Ireland