Gilmour

ALT Black text saying "LGBTQA+ people are not broken. End conversion practices", on a background that is mostly pink with some purple and blue highlight colours. At the bottom are the logos of the Equality Network and Scottish Trans, in black.

ALT Screenshot of first half of letter: Neale Hanvey criticises the Scottish Government's current consultation on proposals to ban conversion practices ("conversion therapy"). He writes that "it will be illegal to say the 'wrong thing' even if it inflicts no perceivable harm" (First Minister's 'la, la, la' approach won't cut it, Feb 19). But that is not at all what the proposals say. The proposed law would ban attempts to change or suppress another person's sexual orientation or gender identity, but only where it is proven that coercion has been used, or that the practices are being offered as a service, and also proven that harm has been caused to the person subjected to the practices. Most of us LGBT people have fortunately escaped such attempts. But a minority have been subjected to them. The research is clear that those practices do not change a person's sexual orientation or gender identity, but they do cause huge harm through damage to mental health, which can last a lifetime.

ALT Screenshot of second half of letter. Text reads: That's why UN and European human rights bodies have called for conversion practices to be banned worldwide. The Scottish Parliament's cross-party Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee conducted an inquiry into the issue two years ago, and concluded, unanimously, that conversion practices should be banned. Even the current UK Government, no friend to social equality, says it intends to introduce a ban, although there is clearly no prospect of that before the election. The Scottish Government's consultation is open for six more weeks, so anyone can respond, and help to ensure that the eventual legislation is effective and equitable. Tim Hopkins Edinburgh