EVIDENCE submitted to the Government and to the Church of England by the Royal College of Psychiatrists, which has informed their responses to ‘gay marriage’ was seriously flawed, distorting medical science and replacing it with gay ideology. Equally important, the outworking of this ideology is leading to therapists being struck off by their professional bodies for assisting clients who wish to reduce their same-sex attractions.
So claim the authors of Beyond Critique: The Misuse of Science by UK Professional Mental Health Bodies. In a hard-hitting analysis they find alarming discrepancies between statements by the College purporting to represent cited scientific studies, and the actual studies themselves.
In a letter to the College a month ago, the authors spelled out their concerns. In particular, the College claims that the causation of homosexuality is “biological”, a view which has led many to sympathise with and support equal marriage. However, its failure even to mention twin studies, which refute this theory, is described as ideological and “embarrassing”.
In another example, the word ‘majority’ was misreported, apparently fraudulently, by the College as ‘a small minority (13%)’. “There is plenty of evidence that homosexuality is not fixed but fluid, particularly among women,” said co-author Mr Dermot O’Callaghan, “but that is being denied by the College.” The College also claims such therapy can be “deeply damaging”, yet it cited no evidence of such a causal link.
The College implies that discrimination in society is a major cause of mental ill-health among LGB people, and commends ‘equal marriage’ as a Public Health strategy to counteract this. It cites evidence from American states where, unlike in the UK, civil unions were banned, discrimination was unrestrained and private health insurance for gays was unobtainable. However, it ignores more relevant research from the UK – where we have civil partnerships, anti-discrimination laws and free healthcare – which shows that perceived discrimination here is actually low. “They offer no grounds to believe that equal marriage will be a more effective remedy than civil partnerships, and other causes of mental ill-
health among LGB people are ignored,” said Dr Peter May, a retired GP and former member of the Church of England’s parliament, the General Synod.
Beyond Critique also criticises the UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP) for its draconian prohibitions on therapists from assisting clients to reduce unwanted same-sex attractions on grounds of “overwhelming evidence” that they would suffer “considerable emotional and psychological cost”. It has repeatedly declined to demonstrate any such evidence. Even people who want help to save their marriages are turned away by therapists, who are now being struck off by their own professional Royal college ‘misled’ Parliament and Church in science behind ‘gay marriage’ and ‘striking off’ of therapists bodies, such as the UKCP.
Beyond Critique is being sent to all members of both Lords and Commons, as background information influencing the Equal Marriage debate, as well as to members of the General Synod of the Church of England. It is available on Amazon, also as an e-book.
Meanwhile, the Royal College of Psychiatrists and the UK Council for Psychotherapy have failed to offer any response.
