𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Bosses could go to jail if their employees address colleagues using the wrong gender pronouns because of a draft new law, campaigners have warned. Critics suggest that the Draft Conversion Practices Bill means company directors and people in charge of other organisations can find themselves in deep trouble if one of their members of staff attempts to suppress or alter someone’s sexual orientation or gender identity. Helen Joyce, director of Sex Matters, a gender-critical human rights body, told The Telegraph that every organisation in Britain “should be terrified” of the legislation.

She added: “Given the insistence of the trans lobby that having to use the correct toilets for their sex is a serious infringement of trans people’s human rights, employers will be between a rock and a hard place. Let trans-identifying men use female facilities at work and you’re breaching workplace regulations; tell them to stay out and you face criminal charges if they complain.

“It’s hard to imagine more incompetent legislative drafting – or a more draconian and harmful law.” A Government spokesman told the newspaper: “It’s completely untrue that this bill will burden businesses, unless your business is pushing abusive conversion practices, which we will outlaw.”

They added: “It is standard practice for new criminal legislation to result in minor costs related to updated guidance or training for safeguarding professionals, such as social workers or teachers, to be equipped to spot abuse and support victims.”

The Government says the Bill would “create new offences in relation to the carrying out of abusive conversion practices on individuals; to make provision for conversion practice protection orders: and for connected purposes”.

The proposed law has also been branded “ideological, authoritarian, unworkable and wholly unsuitable”. Campaigners have also said it is “a threat to the liberties of the majority of citizens, as well as to their fundamental human rights”.

A Policy Exchange think tank report was co-authored by a former chairwoman of Britain’s rights watchdog — the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC). Baroness Kishwer Falkner said: “This draft Bill appears oblivious to human rights law in Britain.

“In current form it breaches numerous rights including the right to a fair trial, the right to a family life, the freedom to hold religious or other beliefs, while curtailing freedom of expression. The impact of its measures on parental rights and duties and children’s safeguarding is unforeseen.

“It has been ill-conceived and will be unworkable unless it is considerably revised and then subjected to a full public consultation.”

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