//Have to agree that getting rid of these cures is a great thing though but wonder how it's only being done in 2018. //
I'm sure a not-insignificant factor is that there are MPs (such as the delightful Stephen Crabb, off the top of my head) who are involved in churches that do this, and the parties don't want to embarass themselves too much by shining a light on it.
Of course, at the moment there is zero cabinet discipline so Penny Mourdant (who, appropriately, is the main driver for this) is forging ahead and getting something done that would be politically hard to navigate in other circumstances.