From the US’ Pete Buttigieg, to Germany’s Jens Spahn and Serbia’s Ana Brnabić, there are more openly gay and lbian policians senr ernments around the globe than ever before
Contents:
- JOHNSON HAS LGBT 'BLD SPOT', SAYS FIRST OPENLY GAY BET MISTER
- THE TE STORY OF ‘A VERY ENGLISH SNDAL’ AND THE TRIALS OF A CLOSETED GAY POLICIAN
- THE QUIET REVOLUTN: WHY BRA HAS MORE GAY MPS THAN ANYWHERE ELSE
- RISHI SUNAK APOLOGIS TO LGBT VETERANS FOR PAST ARMED FORC GAY BAN
- MANY BRONS HAVE CHANGED THEIR MDS ON GAY MARRIAGE
- THE GLAMOUR BOYS: GAY MPS WHO GAVE EARLY WARNG OF NAZI THREAT
- THE U.K. NOW HAS MORE GAY LAWMAKERS THAN ANY OTHER COUNTRY
- GAY MPS: THE PHOTOGRAPH THAT SHOWS WTMSTER'S ATTU TOWARDS LGBT POLICIANS IS CHANGG
- THE UK’S PARLIAMENT IS STILL THE GAYT THE WORLD AFTER 2019 ELECTN
- CLOSET QUEENS BY MICHAEL BLOCH REVIEW – WHO KNEW THERE WERE SO MANY GAY MPS?
JOHNSON HAS LGBT 'BLD SPOT', SAYS FIRST OPENLY GAY BET MISTER
The UK's first openly gay bet mister, Lord Smh, urg the PM to diversify his top team. * gay british politicians *
Media ptn, Lord Chris Smh talks about the language he wnsed parliament the 1990sBoris Johnson has a "bld spot" when to appotg LGBT+ people to his top team, the UK's first openly gay bet mister has Chris Smh, who was a member of Tony Blair's first bet 1997, said was a "matter of great regret" that there were currently no out bet urged the PM to diversify his top team "the next year or two". A ernment spokman said Mr Johnson was mted to improvg UK parliament now has s hight ever proportn of lbian, gay and bisexual MPs, cludg two non-bet misters, although there are no openly transgenr members of parliament.
THE TE STORY OF ‘A VERY ENGLISH SNDAL’ AND THE TRIALS OF A CLOSETED GAY POLICIAN
Once gay ndidat were monised – or forced to hi the closet. Now Wtmster boasts 32 LGB MPs, more than any other untry. But, as gay policians past and prent nfirm, the battle is not over yet * gay british politicians *
" Chris Smh's reerImage source, PA MediaImage ptn, Smh promot Brish film at Cann 1999A leadg figure New Labour, who beme an MP for a North London nstuency 1983The followg year, at a gay rights rally Rugby, Warwickshire, he said: "My name is Chris Smh. I'm the Labour MP for Islgton South and Fsbury, and I'm gay"Smh's unscripted announcement - which earned a standg ovatn - was the first time a gay MP had chosen to e outLabour's Mreen Colquhoun - a pneerg femist whose ath at the age of 92 was announced earlier this month - had been open about her sexualy the 1970s, after the Daily Mail revealed she was a relatnship wh another womanIn 1997, Smh was appoted culture secretary, wh rponsibily for the Millennium Dome, the creative dtri and troducg ee mm entryHe later served as head of the Environment Agency, after steppg down as an MP 2005 and enterg the Hoe of LordsJte Greeng who was the first and, as thgs stand, only out lbian bet mister thks 's more of a "pipele" issue - that not as many LGBT+ MPs have risen through the ranks as had been Greeng served Thera May's Conservative bet, as tn secretary and equali mister, alongsi Secretary of State for Stland, David Munll, who also me out while office.
Even then, was followed by dranian measur to prevent gay relatnships, cludg the Crimal Law Amendment Act of 1885, which ma “gross cency” between men—a purposely vague term—a crimal act. The panic over homosexualy ntued after World War II, wr historian Michael Bloch Closet Queens: Some 20th Century Brish Policians: “A fiercely homophobic Home Secretary, Sir David Maxwell Fyfe, aid by an equally puranil Director of Public Prosecutns, Sir Theobold Matthew, was termed to ‘rid England of this plague.
THE QUIET REVOLUTN: WHY BRA HAS MORE GAY MPS THAN ANYWHERE ELSE
U.K. Prime Mister Rishi Sunak has apologized for the treatment of gay veterans by sayg that a prev ban on LGBTQ+ people servg the U.K. ary was “an appallg failure of the Brish state.” * gay british politicians *
Regardls of how historilly accurate the earl’s reactn to his servant’s behavr was, is te that gay experimentatn flourished upper-class, sex-segregated is like boardg school, the ary, and the clergy.
Stephen Twigg was gay – a “practisg homosexual”, to e a formula still popular at the time – and though mours about Michael Portillo’s sexualy had been swirlg for years, he was most fely not.
Proportnally, though, the SNP is now by far the gayt party Wtmster, wh 12% of s MPs chalkg themselv up as sexual may scratch our heads as to the meang of the numbers: is a surprise that there are so many out Tori?
RISHI SUNAK APOLOGIS TO LGBT VETERANS FOR PAST ARMED FORC GAY BAN
SNP's Hannah Barll and Labour's Nia Griffh are the latt MPs to announce that they are gay. * gay british politicians *
Homosexualy was crimalised England and Wal 1967 by reformg home secretary Roy Jenks (Stland had to wa until 1980, and Northern Ireland until 1982), but prosecutns for sexual offenc ntued to snare many gay men to the 90s.
MANY BRONS HAVE CHANGED THEIR MDS ON GAY MARRIAGE
Levels of LGBT+ reprentatn the UK parliament - wh more gay Conservative MPs than out Labour MPs followg the general electn. * gay british politicians *
In addn, a vic prs culture of blackmail and exposure ma life difficult for gay people who wanted to participate ernment and Tatchell, who stood as the Labour ndidate for Bermondsey 1983, was the subject of a notorly homophobic mpaign by his Liberal opponents.
“There were lots of gay MPs, ” he says, “but they were all the closet, eher bee they were secure about their own sexualy, or bee they feared vilifitn the papers and selectn by their party. Photograph: Tony Harris/PAStill, Tatchell says there was “public revulsn” agast the homophobia he experienced, which he believ ma the tabloids more reluctant to nduct anti-gay wch-hunts, for a time, at least.
THE GLAMOUR BOYS: GAY MPS WHO GAVE EARLY WARNG OF NAZI THREAT
* gay british politicians *
“As today’s report mak clear, that perd many endured the most horrific sexual abe and vlence, homophobic bullyg and harassment, all while bravely servg this untry, ” Sunak told MP. Promisg the ernment would implement the “vast majory” of Etherton’s remendatns, Wallace said he would fully update the Commons a formal bate about the issue after the about pensatn, Wallace said he hoped to fd “an elegant solutn that match the need and the requirements of those dividuals”, promisg to set this out after Kelly Holm, who served the army and me out as gay last year, was among mpaigners who weled the apology. Starmer said one of his nstuents, Ken Wright, a former RAF service member who was “forced to leave the job he loved simply bee he was gay”, was the public gallery to hear the apology.
THE U.K. NOW HAS MORE GAY LAWMAKERS THAN ANY OTHER COUNTRY
As we look forward to another year, we nnot help but ponr the fact that if Gordon Brown had lled an tumn electn we uld have been hearg a very different Queen's Speech last if the Conservativ or even the Liberal Democrats had won the electn, there would be gay people at the heart of purpose of this Top 50 list is to monstrate the prence of gay and lbian people at the hight levels of Brish polics. * gay british politicians *
Image source, Emma RileyImage ptn, Rad operator Emma Riley was discharged om the Navy for beg a lbian the 1990sRishi Sunak has apologised for the historil treatment of LGBT veterans who were sacked or forced out of the ary for beg PM lled the ban an "appallg failure" of the Brish was illegal to be gay the Brish ary until 2000 - wh thoands of veterans thought to be affected. Acrdg to the report, the Mistry of Defence said at the time that jtifitn for the policy clud "matenance of operatnal effectivens and efficiency" - but the report said there had been an "prehensible policy of homophobic bigotry" the armed forc.
It heard shockg acunts of homophobia, bullyg, blackmail, sexual asslts, "disgraceful" medil examatns, and nversn mak 49 remendatns to the ernment cludg:Affected veterans to be given an "appropriate fancial reward" pped at £50m overallThe rtoratn of medals that had to be hand back on dismissal or dischargeThe clarifitn of pensn rights The prentatn of a special veterans' badgeThe ernment said would rpond full after summer of the veterans affected watched the PM's public of them, Emma Riley, 51, was a Royal Navy rad operator for three years before she was arrted and discharged for beg a lbian after tellg a lleague her sexualy the early told BBC News she weled the report, and hoped would be put to place "swiftly.
GAY MPS: THE PHOTOGRAPH THAT SHOWS WTMSTER'S ATTU TOWARDS LGBT POLICIANS IS CHANGG
"Olympian Dame Kelly Holm, who served the army and me out as gay last year, lled the publitn of the report a "historic moment", while Cathere Dixon, a former army officer who is now vice chair at Stonewall, said was "an important step towards jtice" for those whose ary reers were "ed" bee of their sexualy. Many still have a crimal rerd to this also tails how some veterans faced a plete loss of e, while others were emed eligible to claim their pensn bee of their report more than 20 years after four servicemen and women, who were sacked for beg gay, won a se the European Court of Human Rights and overturned the armed forc chary Royal Brish Legn lled on the ernment to accept the report's remendatns chary's director general Charl Byrne weled both the report and Mr Sunak's "landmark apology", sayg many people who had dited their liv to the untry were "forced or felt prsured to leave the armed forc, and this mistreatment stroyed or shortened their reer". A group of mps led by Ben Bradshaw, a gay Anglin, is lookg at ways to amend the legislatn to allow willg prits and parish to take part, which they argue uld also help boost dwdlg numbers the aisl.
THE UK’S PARLIAMENT IS STILL THE GAYT THE WORLD AFTER 2019 ELECTN
“As today’s report mak clear, that perd many endured the most horrific sexual abe and vlence, homophobic bullyg and harassment, all while bravely servg this untry, ” Sunak told Parliament. Veterans’ ttimoni “give shockg evince of a culture of homophobia, and of bullyg, blackmail and sexual asslts, abive vtigatns to sexual orientatn and sexual preference, disgraceful medil examatns, cludg nversn therapy, ” the report said.
CLOSET QUEENS BY MICHAEL BLOCH REVIEW – WHO KNEW THERE WERE SO MANY GAY MPS?
“From a personal pot of view, the ban affected me terms of who I was and what I uldn’t be for 34 years, ” Holm ban on homosexualy was abandoned 2000, when the European Court of Human Rights led favor of four service personnel who were vtigated and then discharged bee of their sexualy.