Barclays Bank has agreed to pay £21,500 to a Christian charity, having closed its account over its controversial ministry of helping people to “leave their LGBT attractions and life choices”.
Barclays agreed the payment to Core Issues Trust ahead of a looming court case, where the charity sought to challenge the axing of its account.
Christian Legal Centre, which was to represent CIT, was preparing to argue that Barclays had discriminated against the charity’s chief executive, Mike Davidson, by closing the account – having given in to pressure from activists.
Barclays, which denies the allegations, said it had settled the case with no admission of guilt and that it had not given back CIT’s account.
The issue of ‘conversion therapy’ – a label CIT does not accept for itself – has been in the news, with activists lobbying the government to bring forward legislation making it a criminal offence.
CIT welcomed the settlement and accused Barclays of trying to “appease its Stonewall sponsors” by closing its account.
Davidson said: “This case must serve as a warning to the government of what is to come if it proceeds with publishing and enforcing its ‘conversion therapy’ ban.
“From the outset, it was more important to Barclays to appease their Stonewall sponsors than to protect the basic freedom in this country of having a bank account without being discriminated against because of your beliefs.
“Barclays set itself up to enforce a political or religious viewpoint as an arbiter of public morality and unilaterally ended the accounts before any ‘conversion therapy’ legislation was in sight.”
He added: “The whole experience was frightening and deeply concerning to myself, my family and colleagues.
“This must never happen again to another individual, church or Christian ministry. The government must act now to protect Christian ministries from such brazen discrimination.”
Barclays said: “Barclays has today agreed a commercial settlement with Core Issues Trust following our decision to cease acting as their bankers in 2020.
“This is a commercial settlement, predicated on our assessment of the costs of defending this claim to conclusion against the cost of settling the matter today.
“There has been no admission of liability by Barclays and there has been no decision by the Court calling into question Barclays’ actions including Barclays’ decision to exit its relationship with Core Issues Trust and The International Federation for Therapeutic and Counselling Choice [which also had its account closed by Barclays].”
The bank’s statement continued: “Barclays remains an advocate for the equality and dignity of all members of society, including the LGBT+ community, and our stance in this matter affirms this position.
“We will continue to build understanding of diverse experiences and perspectives, and create a more inclusive environment in the communities in which we operate.”
Barclays is one of many financial institutions to have partnered with Stonewall and has sought to closely identify itself with LGBTQQIA+ activists in recent years.