India, May 14 -- The European Commission said on Wednesday it will ask all European Union nations to outlaw gay "conversion therapy" following a public campaign to ban the practice.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday that "conversion practices" have "no place in our Union". Increasing protections for LGTBQ+ citizens has been long promised by the EU executive since she took office in 2019.

The EU's Agency for Fundamental Rights said in 2024 that one in four LGTBQ+ citizens polled had been subjected to the scientifically discredited practice to attempt to change their sexual orientation or gender identity. Reports of the practice were highest in Greece, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, and Slovakia. ...