Debate contribution: Conversion Practices (Criminalisation) Bill: Second Stage
Debate contribution by Mr Eóin Tennyson on .
- MLA
- Mr Eóin Tennyson
- Party at the time
- Alliance Party
- Date
- 22 September 2026
- Type
- Debate contribution
- Business
- Private Members' Business
- Heading
- Conversion Practices (Criminalisation) Bill: Second Stage
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5741066
Read the official Assembly record
Text
I thank the Member for giving way. How you distinguish between coercive behaviour and difficult and challenging conversations is an important issue. That is a legitimate point of debate at all stages of the Bill. From my perspective, given the definition that we have employed, the individual in question would have to engage in a coercive course of behaviour — threatening the individual, intimidating the individual, humiliating the individual and making the individual fearful that, if they do not change their identity, they will come to harm, thereby forcing the individual to suppress who they are. We already disaggregate difficult conversation and coercion when it comes to domestic abuse law. The police, the PPS and the courts have shown that they are able, with the very same definitions, to distinguish between what is difficult but acceptable behaviour and what is coercive behaviour. The other important thing to look at in this context is the fact that additional tests are applied. For example, in a cruelty to a child offence or a domestic abuse offence, it need only be likely to a reasonable person that the behaviour could have caused harm. In this Bill, the test is that harm — actual harm — has to be proven beyond all reasonable doubt. There is also an intent test. Therefore, the number of hurdles that need to be gone through to make an offence under this legislation is greater.
In effect, a parent in that scenario would in all likelihood have to be guilty of a cruelty to a child offence before they could ever be convicted of a conversion practices offence in practice. Members need to keep that in mind. As to whether we need to have a debate again about harm testing, I have said to Members that I am happy to have that debate to ensure that we get the right balance.
312 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
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