Parliament has voted to ban conversion therapy, but two Bay MPs voted against it. Photo / Sylvie Whinray
Parliament has voted to ban conversion therapy, but two Bay MPs voted against it. Photo / Sylvie Whinray
Parliament has voted to make conversion therapy illegal, but two Bay of Plenty MPs were among the few who did not support the bill.
The bill makes it a criminal offence to perform conversion practices on someone aged under 18, or on someone with impaired decision-making capacity.
Doing so would be punishable by up to three years' imprisonment.
The bill creates two new criminal offences for either the most serious cases of harm or where there is a heightened risk of harm, as well as the opportunity for civil action.
Rotorua MP Todd McClay and Tauranga MP Simon Bridges voted against the ban, along with six other National MPs.
McClay said he supported the legislation despite voting against it.
"I am pleased that the legislation has passed into law as I remain opposed to the practice of conversion and voted for it at earlier stages."
He said he changed his vote because of issues he had regarding free speech and parental rights.
"There were a number of amendments proposed to ensure parents would not be penalised for talking to their children or people criminalised for having a different view than the legislation.
Rotorua MP Todd McClay. Photo / Andrew Warner
"The Government accepted that there were some problems with this area of the legislation, however it voted the amendments down, saying it would fix these at a later stage.
"I do support the legislation, with the exception of these two issues."
Bridges had previously raised similar concerns about the legislation.
Justice Committee commentary about the bill said while many submitters were concerned parents and whānau could be criminalised for having some conversations, the committee considered many of these conversations would not meet the criteria for what the bill defines as a "conversion practice".
Rotorua-based list MP Tamati Coffey said it was "really concerning" that Bay of Plenty MPs had voted against the ban.
He said some MPs had "a consistent voting pattern against rainbow issues" in both this vote and the Marriage Amendment Bill that legalised gay marriage in 2013.
McClay, Upston and Bridges voted against the amendment back then.
"We've got strong communities across the Bay, rainbow communities, and they should feel represented by their representatives.
"On these occasions, they have every right to contact their local MPs and give their piece of mind about how that vote went last night."
Coffey said it was "an amazing feeling" when the bill passed.
He credited the hard work of political activists who presented the original petition to Parliament, as well as the select committees who waded through 100,000 submissions.
Rotorua-based list MP Tamati Coffey. Photo / Andrew Warner A_310720aw15.JPG
"In that moment where it passed, my mind went to all of that, which was the journey, really - the heartache and the tough conversations that it's taken to get to that point."
He said the passing of the bill meant "there will no longer be a place for conversion practices to occur in our towns and cities around the Bay."
"This is for future generations of New Zealanders that will no longer have to worry about being 'fixed' by a community that seeks to 'correct' their gender or their sexuality."
Organisers of the Tauranga Moana Pride festival said conversion therapy caused significant damage to the rainbow community.
Judith Schuyler said she hoped other countries would follow New Zealand's example.
"Conversion therapy promotes the idea that being LGBTQ+ is a negative way of being.
"Today we remember all those who have been harmed in our history, and celebrate that our country moves past this history forever."
Judith Schuyler, one of six organisers of tge Tauranga Moana Pride Festival. Photo / Talia Parker
Wynand Claasen said: "Banning conversion therapy provides much-needed assurance to the youth that they can be their authentic selves and be safe."
