Deputy Director at The Christian Institute.
Newcastle-upon-Tyne, UK
Joined August 2020
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Simon Calvert retweeted
The committee reviewing the Government’s draft Conversion Practices Bill is inviting public submissions. The deadline is 5pm on Monday 16 November.
This is our opportunity to highlight the enormous threat the Bill poses to ordinary Christian conversations, prayer and parenting.
Find out how you can respond at the.ci/protect-churches
Simon Calvert retweeted
@NazShahBfd raises an excellent and pertinent point here. The response, not so much.
@NazShahBfd asking the questions that they don't want to hear. Plain parental conversations with their children will fall under the scope of this Bill and the parents will be criminalised. Saying 'No' or 'I don't agree' with a teenager will inevitably cause 'distress'. An answer such as 'Very difficult to answer in the abstract' is not good enough. This is law. We need precision.
Me writing for @EvangelicalTime on the importance of responding to the joint committee call for evidence
Christians must be free to speak the truth in love
evangelical-times.org/christ…
Simon Calvert retweeted
The Ban Conversion Practices Coalition has been extremely vocal in its demands for prayer to be criminalised. Yet when asked whether the draft Bill it supports could do exactly that, suddenly, it’s ‘too difficult’ to say.
Baroness Brown of Silvertown asks the Ban Conversion Practices Coalition’s Prof Ilias Trispiotis whether a pastor who prays with someone struggling with their identity could be guilty of a ‘conversion practice’.
No amount of obfuscation changes the fact that: yes, yes, they could.
In Victoria, Australia – which the Coalition has called the “gold standard” and a model for the UK to emulate – the Government has even issued guidance on which prayers are acceptable under its conversion practices law.
The Joint Committee on the Draft Conversion Practices Bill has issued a call for evidence. Sign up at christian.org.uk/sign-up and we’ll email you with advice on how to respond. Closes 16 Nov. committees.parliament.uk/sub…
Simon Calvert retweeted
Proposed conversion practices bans may seem harmless.
In reality they are a wildly illiberal intrusion into family life that threatens to turn Britain into a Stasi state.
Link to my article (from June) for the Daily Mail here:
dailymail.com/news/article-1…
Simon Calvert retweeted
.@NazShahBfd spells out the truly chilling reality of the Government’s draft conversion practices ban: a parent who refuses to affirm their child’s identity could be guilty of a criminal offence.
Simon Calvert retweeted
“that won’t be a chilling effect, that’ll be a deep freeze” – @Jebadoo2 💥
Health professionals are already warning that if the conversion practices ban becomes law, they would have no choice but to stop working with children and adults struggling with their identity. The risk of prosecution would be too great.
Simon Calvert retweeted
🚨@HJoyceGender demolishes the claim that a conversion practices law would catch only a tiny number of abusers by exposing the sheer range of ordinary people who could be dragged into the criminal crosshairs:
- PARENTS
- TEACHERS
- EMPLOYERS
@SexMattersOrg
Simon Calvert retweeted
Today marks the first day of oral evidence on the Government’s draft Conversion Practices Bill.
We’ll be clipping LIVE between 12.15–2pm. Follow along here for the key moments from today’s evidence.
You can also watch the session here: parliamentlive.tv/Event/Inde…
The committee of MPs and Peers tasked with examining the Govt’s draft Conversion Practices Bill is taking oral evidence in a few minutes from:
- Stonewall
- Ban Conversion Practices Coalition
- Galop
Then from friends at:
- Sex Matters
- Gay Men’s Network
- LGB Alliance
parliamentlive.tv/event/inde…
Pray for clarity and insight for the committee.
Simon Calvert retweeted
Former Labour health minister raises ‘serious concerns’ that draft bill places parents at risk of prosecution.
Charities, including the Gay Men’s Network and the Christian Institute, have urged the Government to reconsider the plans via @Telegraph 👇🏻
Simon Calvert retweeted
"Preet Kaur Gill, the MP for Edgbaston... “Nobody should ever be subjected to abuse because of their LGBT identity. The intentions of the bill – seeking to protect vulnerable people – are laudable. Yet there are serious concerns about the draft text that undermine what has become clear in recent research about the vulnerability of children exploring gender ideology.
As the Cass Review advised, parents and guardians must have freedom to take a cautious approach when navigating sensitive topics with their children. The evidence shows that devices such as chest-binders or puberty blockers can cause long-term bodily damage.
But by criminalising words that amount to ‘economic’ and ‘emotional pressure’, the bill could undermine this advice from Cass, and ensnare parents who simply want to properly examine the risks involved with early “transition”, and where appropriate, advise against rushing into the use of such serious interventions.
It would be wrong if a bill created to protect vulnerable people would overreach into potentially causing unnecessary censorship of important and loving conversations within families.”
"At the 2024 Labour conference, Tracy Gilbert, MP for Edinburgh North and Leith, said that introducing a ban risked “potential pitfalls” and many parliamentarians were unaware of the risks"
telegraph.co.uk/gift/55e9458…
Simon Calvert retweeted
What would the 'conversion practices' ban actually do?
Abuse is already illegal, so what will the Westminster Government’s draft ‘conversion practices’ Bill actually do? Spelling out the threshold for an offence under the proposals, the Institute’s Simon Calvert warns that it will actually create a new speech crime that risks criminalising perfectly reasonable opinions and ordinary everyday conversations. Help us oppose plans for a ‘conversion therapy’ ban. Learn more: youtube.com/watch?v=DQ4_zrtn… #conversiontherapy #ReligiousLiberty #FreeSpeech
Simon Calvert retweeted
The Conversion Practices Bill in Northern Ireland is not just an attack on free speech. It also poses a serious threat to religious freedom.
The Bill will have a chilling effect on the day-to-day work of the Church, particularly pastoral care.
As James Kennedy points out, even if someone voluntarily asks their pastor to pray with them, the pastor could still face legal consequences. Under the proposed legislation, consent would not necessarily provide a defence. The fact that someone requested the prayer could make no difference.
Even conversations in the confessional could potentially be criminalised. Confession is at the very heart of the Catholic Church.
Religious leaders could also face up to five years behind bars if their teachings on sex, gender, family life or marriage were deemed to constitute a prohibited conversion practice.
If you're a parent, therapist or priest, the implications of this Bill should send shivers down your spine.
Watch on the FSU YouTube channel 👇
youtu.be/rWVrB8ovPiY?is=SAJ8…
First oral evidence session by the Joint Committee on the Draft Conversion Practices Bill. Thursday 29 October.
Simon Calvert retweeted
Christian groups say proposed conversion therapy ban amounts to censorship
christiantoday.com/news/chri…
Simon Calvert retweeted
"This draft legislation is one of the most troubling attempts at censorship we’ve seen." - @SimonCalvert14
christian.org.uk/news/ci-urg…
Simon Calvert retweeted
TODAY AT 12.30PM
Go to: christian.org.uk/ct
The Westminster Government’s draft ‘conversion therapy’ ban could make it a crime not to affirm someone’s LGBTQ+ identity. Gospel ministry and ordinary parenting are at stake.
Join us on Thursday 22 October to find out how you can help oppose this threat to church and family life.
For more details 👉christian.org.uk/wp-content/…
@christianorguk @GLDeclaration @EvangelicalTime
