Writing in newspaper i on the 50th anniversary of the UK’s first Pride, the former Conservative prime minister said: “Few people, reading trans people, would disagree that they continue to face humiliation and prejudice when they deserve understanding and respect. “We must fight for greater understanding on both sides of the debate. Just because an issue is controversial does not mean that we can avoid it. “To this end, the government must live up to its commitment to address the issue of trans-conversion therapy. “If it is not going to be in the upcoming bill, then the issue should not be allowed to escape.” Her comments follow an initial move in late March by the prime minister to abandon plans to ban any conversion practices. However, within hours of the reaction, the government made a U-turn. The ministers later outlined the legislation – the bill on conversion therapy – in the queen’s speech, which would ban conversion practices aimed at changing one’s sexual orientation in certain scenarios. However, he said that because of the “complexity of the issues and the need for further careful consideration”, the legislation would not prohibit trans conversion practices. Subscribe to the First Edition, our free daily newsletter – every morning at 7 p.m. BST In an article for the newspaper, May said she regretted her previous opposition to LGBT equality after voting against lowering the age of consent for homosexual acts in 1998 and repealing Article 28 in 2002. He said that 50 years after the activists were abused and ridiculed, “we can be proud of how much and how deeply the attitudes have changed.” He added: “I include myself in this – looking back now, there are issues that I would have voted for differently if I had voted on them today.” However, May’s statement came after Scottish Conservative MSP Jamie Greene criticized the government this week for excluding trans people from the proposed ban, calling the move “defenseless”. “I am not a member of the UK Government in the first place – I want to make it clear – and it is not my job to defend the defenseless,” Green said. He told PinkNews: “We are committed to the LGBTQ + community that we will ban conversion therapy. We must live up to this promise, and the Scottish Government must do exactly the same. “We have to do it here, we have to do it in Westminster, we have to do it in Wales, we have to do it in Northern Ireland.” Johnson, who also wrote for the newspaper, said it made him “most proud to lead a country where you can love whoever you choose to love.”
