The LGBTQ+ community across the UK was hit with the reveal of the latest cabinet reshuffle on November 13. Whilst we all may have breathed a sigh of relief at the sacking of Suella Braverman as Home Secretary, who has publicly declared anti-trans, anti-migrant, and anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric, there is zero representation of the LGBTQ+ community in Sunak’s latest cabinet reshuffle. Braverman was replaced by James Cleverly, who claimed that gay football teams should be respectful during the World Cup in Qatar.
David Cameron was elected as Foreign Secretary, the man who voted in favour of civil partnerships in 2004, the Equality Act in 2005, and later in favour of gay marriage. Not to be the voice of pessimism, but I can’t help but beg the question about whether Cameron’s policies were simply promotional stunts to paint his party as softer conservatives, notably due to his silence on LGBTQ+ rights since his resignation.
Cameron’s election also is deemed by many as simply undemocratic, as he can only serve as a minister due to his appointment to the House of Lords (an unelected house) as a life peer. Not to crush the nail even harder into the rotting wood of our political framework, but Victoria Atkins has been appointed as Health Secretary, despite her anti-trans sentiments, and Steve Barclay has been appointed as Environment Secretary regardless of his comments about same sex language in healthcare whilst talking about trans identities. Also note that for the first time since 2010, no women have been appointed in the top four offices of state.
“Section 28 appears archaic, a lost memory in a heap of political taboos and derogatory sentiments swept under the Conservatives’ filthy rug, but with the trajectory we are taking now – are we not on a similar path?”
We’ve come far since the appointment of Maureen Colquhoun – the first openly lesbian MP elected to the Labour Party in 1974, but with anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric running rife through our country’s politics, our community is thrusted into an increasingly vulnerable threshold. Section 28 was one example of how easy it is for politicians to implement legislation that isolates and stigmatises. Section 28 appears archaic, a lost memory in a heap of political taboos and derogatory sentiments swept under the Conservatives’ filthy rug, but with the trajectory we are taking now – are we not on a similar path? The University of Law reported in February that laws protecting LGBTQ+ citizens are at risk of being put back decades.
It shouldn’t incite shock that, in just a few years, the UK has slipped from first to seventeenth in terms of the top countries for LGBTQ+ rights. Disappointment, yes, but not shock. LGBTQ+ news outlets described the Conservative Party contest last year as being “defined by anti-trans attacks”. Earlier this year, the headlines were jammed with the Conservative’s proposed revision of the Equality Act, which in essence strips the trans community of rights that they have enjoyed for over a decade.
In a statement given to PinkNews, Green Party co-leader Carla Denyer said: “As a bisexual (cis) woman…I am clear that my rights as a woman do not conflict with trans people’s rights. On the contrary, we share a common project: to fight for gender equality and against patriarchy.” Unfortunately, this concept doesn’t seem to be shared by our governing party. I don’t want to mislead you by suggesting all blame can be scapegoated onto the Conservatives, as our gloomy political forecast descended into thunder when Keir Starmer supported this revision, only days after both parties commented in support of the trans community on the Trans Day of Visibility.
In a torrential sweep of anti-LGBTQ+ propaganda spouted by our government, let’s not forget the slamming decision last Christmas, when the Scottish Greens passed their Gender Recognition Reform Bill (already implemented by more than 30 countries or territories across the world), which was subsequently blocked by the Westminster government using a section 38 order.
“We’ve come far since the appointment of Maureen Colquhoun – the first openly lesbian MP elected to the Labour Party in 1974, but with anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric running rife through our country’s politics, our community is thrusted into an increasingly vulnerable threshold.”
This is the first time section 38 has been implemented, and the government was tactfully able to swerve the debate from that of basic human rights to a petty squabble about an outdated West Lothian Question and our already fragmented understanding of devolution. With many comparing this to the modern day equivalent of Section 28, Thatcher’s prehistoric policies don’t seem to be keeping their place in our history books. When the lines between history and present day become blurred, we are all at risk.
So, why does this matter? A 2018 study done by colleagues at the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law found that inclusion of gender and sexual identities in a country’s law and policies has strong associations with democracy, rule of law, and free press. It isn’t just our community that is being fired arrows at, it’s the entire political and judicial system. When we crumble, everything else will follow us in collapsing into the rubble.
The UK Government has sworn to ban conversion therapy for five years, backed by the entire medical establishment, a multitude of faith leaders – including the Church of England, and the British public (this includes 60% of Conservative voters). Yet, nothing has been done. If anything, this is living, breathing proof that our government does not represent the people it serves – least of all the 1.5 million LGBTQ+ people in the UK.
The politicians we (rarely) elect have an immeasurable influence on the impressionable lifestyle and human rights of our entire society. Last year, when transphobic hate crimes in England and Wales hit a record high, the Home Office acknowledged that comments made by politicians and the media have contributed to this.
Lee Anderson, senior Tory MP who was Deputy of the Conservative Party, has said that the next general election will be based on a mix of “culture wars and trans debate”. Regardless of who you vote for in the next 12 months, know that every vote matters. We have the ability to redirect the trajectory our government is leading its unwilling citizens, and we must be empowered to speak on what is so desperately being hidden behind drawn curtains. It is time that we take pride in our politics.
