According to Minister of JusticeLeena Meri (Finns), a proposed ban on so-called ‘conversion therapy’ will not move forward during this government term, scheduled to end two years from now.
The Justice Ministry does not have time to prepare related legislation, as there is a long list of projects listed in the government programme that are waiting to move forward, she said on Friday.
Meri said that there are at least 20 projects related to the government programme that have yet to be completed, as well as obligations arising from EU law.
"There is no time at the moment unless something else is removed. In that case, the governing parties should agree together on what to remove," she said.
According to Meri, an extensive study of conversion therapy should be conducted in any case. Conversion therapy refers to pseudoscientific efforts aimed at changing someone’s sexual orientation or gender identity.
"As the Legal Affairs Committee pointed out, it is not a completely clear-cut matter," she said.
She adds that the situation is also complicated by the lack of consensus among the governing parties. The small Christian Democratic party particularly opposes it, apparently due to concerns that such a law could restrict activities by religious groups.
The party’s chair, Minister of Agriculture and ForestrySari Essayah (CD) told commercial broadcaster MTV that the criminalisation of conversion therapy will not be promoted during this government term. She made the comment on Friday after Parliament backed the proposal by a sweeping majority.
"Of course, the government cannot propose bills on which it does not have unanimous agreement," said Meri.
Räsänen: Ban "would restrict individual freedom"
Christian Democrats MPPäivi Räsänen expressed her support for Meri in a social media post.
"It is clear that a government including the CD will not prepare or introduce a conversion therapy penalty that would restrict individual freedom and make it difficult to obtain support," wrote Räsänen, a former CD chair (2004-15) and interior minister (2011-15).
In 2021, Räsänen was charged with hate speech due to her comments about homosexuals. She was acquitted by an appeals court, but last year the Supreme Court agreed to hear the case, which Räsänen sought to continue, citing freedom of speech issues.
The CD is one of the smallest parties in Parliament, with just five seats out of 200.
Meri: "No resources for this"
On Friday, Parliament approved a citizens' initiative to ban conversion therapy by a vote of 125–49. MPs were given a free hand to vote their conscience, with one representative each from the National Coalition and Centre parties voting no.
Otherwise only MPs from the Finns Party, the Christian Democrats and the one-seat opposition Movement Now opposed the move.
The citizens’ initiative garnered more than 52,000 signatures in 2023.
Opposition politicians sharply criticised the government for not pursuing a ban.
For example, Greens MPSaara Hyrkkö commented that individual ministers or the government cannot ignore the will of Parliament.
According to Social Democratic MPElisa Gebhard, Meri's rationale based on her ministry's busy schedule sounds like an excuse – an allegation rejected by Meri.
"That's not an excuse, it's just that there are no resources for this. We really have work to do to move forward with, for example, very important legislation related to national and internal security," the minister told Yle.
Conversion therapy has been outlawed in many countries, including Canada, France, Germany, Greece and Spain. Last September, the EU committed to seek such a ban across all 27 member states.
