THEGAYUK

Tag: Politics

The latest news, interviews, and views from the world of LGBT politics in the UK and internationally.

  • COMMENT | Northern Ireland: Wedged between equality

    As Northern Ireland continues to reel from the recent collapse of Stormont and consequent election, many others quietly anticipate what possible changes will come should a new power-sharing executive be formed or get pushed through by Westminster should the current stalemate persist and direct rule be reinstated, one example being marriage equality.

    While MLAs voted for marriage equality by a majority in the most recent motion it was blocked by NIs largest political party, theDemocratic Unionist Party (DUP), who used a petition of concern to effectively veto the vote. Petitions of concern were incorporated into The Good Friday Agreement, which ended years of bloodshed in the province, as a mechanism to prevent disagreement if the vote would be on a cross-community basis, rather than a simple majority. This petition requires the signature of 30 executive members which previously the DUP had but with the loss of 10 seats in election 2017 comes the loss of their ability to use it if or when a new government is formed meaning the next motion put forward would almost definitely pass. If direct rule should be reinstated the DUP will no longer have a choice in the matter of marriage equality as well as the many other issues they continue to oppose, in spite of public opinions, such as reform on abortion laws.

    “Living in Northern Ireland as a gay person can be a surreal experience, the civilisation of same-sex marriage has already been introduced just a few miles down the road in Southern Ireland as well as a few miles across the sea in Scotland, England and Wales, while we remain oppressed by a so called democratic party, it’s rather like being an outdated sandwich filling wedged between two slices of fresh modern bread”

    However optimistic, most of the LGBT community in Northern Ireland remain reserved, fearful that hopes of achieving the equality we are wedged between will once again be dashed. Living in Northern Ireland as a gay person can be a surreal experience, the civilisation of same-sex marriage has already been introduced just a few miles down the road in Southern Ireland as well as a few miles across the sea in Scotland, England and Wales, while we remain oppressed by a so called democratic party, it’s rather like being an outdated sandwich filling wedged between two slices of fresh modern bread. On occasion I have felt like there is no place for me as a gay man in this society and considered leaving Belfast for pastures new where bigotry is not so engrained in politics, just like gay people have had to do for decades, when it occurs to me that this is not the 1960s or 70s anymore, this is 2017 and the majority of people in Northern Ireland along with politicians are in support of equality, understanding and humanity towards the LGBT so why should I leave?

    There is a place in society for the LGBT community whether it’s in Belfast or Baghdad, Grozny or Moscow, there is no place for the oppression inflicted on so many people around the world purely based on their sexual orientation.

    With bars, support services and the gay scene as we know it gradually disappearing it’s more important than ever that we stand together as an international community offering support to our fellow brothers and sisters. This is not just a fight for equality or for us to feel accepted by society, it’s a fight to belong and for us to accept society instead of rejecting it as being incomprehensible and lacking in compassion.

     

    Opinions expressed in this article may not reflect those of THEGAYUK, its management or editorial teams. If you’d like to comment or write a comment, opinion or blog piece, please click here.

  • Jack Monroe thanks Katie Hopkins for funding her election campaign

    Activist and writer Jack Monroe thanked Katie Hopkins for funding her forthcoming election campaign after announcing that will stand for the National Health Action (NHA) party.

    Jack Monroe has announced she will run in the Southend West constituency and will stand for the NHA party.

    On Twitter, the writer thanked Katie Hopkins for funding her campaign.

    Jake Monroe successfully sued Katie Hopkins earlier in the year and was awarded £24,000 in damages.

    On hearing the news some Twitter used suggested that she’d lose her deposit but Ms Monroe wrote,

    “I may well do, but you should be directing your glee to my campaign sponsor, Katie.

    “Because nothing feels more right than using money earned through division and hate, to instead promote unity, community, and care.

    “So from the bottom of my heart, thank you Katie for your generous – if unwitting – contribution to saving the National Health Service.”

    WHO ARE THE NATIONAL HEALTH ACTION PARTY?

    The NHA does not consider itself a single issue party, on their website, they write:

    The NHA is not a single issue, although as single issues go the NHS is huge. But the NHS doesn’t function in a vacuum. Housing, education, support for the unemployed, unwell and disabled, good employment opportunities – all of our domestic policy issues which are the business of government – combine to promote good health or make us ill. These are the ‘social determinants of health’, and are also key party policies.

    Their core principles include:

    Restore the NHS to public ownership

    Halt unnecessary hospital downgrades + closures

    Prioritise mental health

    Renegotiate Private Finance Initiative (PFI)

    Fight EU-USA trade deal TTIP

    Safe maternity care

  • GREEN PARTY | Isle of Wight MP “unfit to represent”

    Speaking out against, MP Andrew Turn, who stepped down after alleged homophobic comments were made to a sixth form class, the Green Party has called the Conservative MP “unfit” and says only the Green party can offer protection to LGBTs.

    MP Andrew Turner who has represented the Isle of Wight for 16 years has resigned after reports emerged that he said he thought it was “wrong” to be gay, and that he thought that it was “dangerous for society”. He allegedly made the comments to sixth form students at the Christ The King College in Newport.

    The Green Party has called the minister “unfit” and said that his comments were abhorrent. Reaching out to the LGBT community,

    Vix Lowthion, Green Party candidate for the Isle of Wight, said,

    “Andrew Turner was unfit to represent the Isle of Wight and his recent, abhorrent comments left his place in Parliament completely untenable. People here deserves someone who will stand up for them. Today the Green Party announced radical plans to protect LGBTIQA+ refugees, provide decent HIV protection and promote rights for intersex and trans people – that is the kind of politics people in the Isle of Wight need and only the Green Party can offer.”

    In their latest manifesto aimed at the LGBT community, the Greens are keen to bring in a raft of new policies which would secure rights for non-binary, trans, asexual and aromantic people.  The word bisexual is mentioned once, lesbian and gay are mentioned four times, intersex 10 times, non-binary 12 times and the word trans is written 19 times.

    However, they did use language such as “men who have sex with men” which has largely been disapproved of by the gay and bisexual male community. The manifesto also does not mention changing current divorce law to equalise it with opposite-sex marriage. They also failed to make policy on how to tackle LGBT+ homelessness.

    It is, however, the first political party to present its LGBT+ manifesto.

     

  • Greens set to launch their gay rights manifesto in a CHURCH

    In what’s being described as setting a “clear distance” between itself and the Liberal Democrats, the Green Party is launching its LGBT+ manifesto in a church.

    • The Green party has said it will commit to supporting LGBT+ asylum seekers.

    • Co-leader of the Greens Jonathan Bartley, said they were the party to ‘always stand up for LGBTIQA+ people’

    • The party has the only openly trans spokesperson in UK politics.

    GPLGBTIQA+GroupShot2
    The Green party is vying for LGBT+ support today after it revealed that it would set out its LGBT+ manifesto in a London Church, a move it says which separates it from the Liberal Democrats. The launch is to take place at The Trinity United Reform Church in Camden, well-known for its progressive views and inclusivity.

    Jonathan Bartley, co-leader of the Green Party, said,

    “The Green Party has a proud history of leading the way when it comes to LGBTIQA+ rights. While other political parties struggle to say what they believe, Greens are clear – we will always stand up for LGBTIQA+ people.

    “We believe in a fairer world, a more equal economy, human rights protected by law, recognition and representation for all gender identities and education and health services which care for and include everyone.”

    Last week, the Liberal Democrat leader, Tim Farron was criticised after initially failing to answer questions on whether he thought, as a committed Christian, if “gay sex” was a sin. He was asked numerous times by Channel 4’s Cathy Newman, 11 times by an LBC reporter and once in the House of Commons. He finally revealed that he didn’t think it was a sin by saying in a BBC interview,

    “I don’t believe that gay sex is a sin.

    “I take the view though, that as a political leader, my job is not to pontificate on theological matters.

    Aimee Challenor, Green Party LGBTIQA+ spokesperson, who is the only openly trans spokesperson of a UK Political Party, said,

    “Let’s be clear, LGBTIQA+ rights are under threat. From Gay and Bi men being tortured and killed in Chechnya, to Donald Trump weakening protections in the US and the UK’s threat to repeal the Human Rights Act, 2017 has already been a concerning year for everyone who cares about LGBTIQA+ people.

    “The Green Party is proud to stand against the erosion of LGBITQA+ rights and launch a manifesto which proudly fights for bodily autonomy for intersex people, legal recognition for trans and non-binary people, for PrEP for all that need it, and for greater protection for LGBTIQA+ asylum seekers – and more.”

     

  • Tim Farron: I Don’t Believe Gay Sex Is A Sin

    It seems as though one question has been following Tim Farron around for some time. Is gay sex a sin?

    A simple question that has been fixated on by the media due to Mr Farron’s refusal to originally answer the question. Back in July 2015, during an interview for Channel 4 news, the newly elected leader of the Liberal Democrats refused to answer the question three times on whether he believed gay sex was a sin. Instead, answering with: “We’re all sinners.”

    Now, nearly two years later, the question came up again as we head into a flash general election. After refusing again to answer the question to journalists, Tim finally told the House of Commons last week, during direct questioning that he did not think that being gay is a sin.

    This still didn’t answer the direct question of gay sex being a sin or not and so, in a BBC interview this week, again Mr Farron’s opinion was sought on the subject. He replied,

    “I don’t believe that gay sex is a sin.

    “I take the view though, that as a political leader, my job is not to pontificate on theological matters.

    “It seems to me that there is a general election on at the moment, we need to be talking about big issues.”

    The general election will take place on Thursday 8th June 2017.

  • COLUMN | Why a transgender woman wants to be MP

    Why the time is right for me to stand for parliament.

    Sophie Cook and labour supporters

    In the 1980s at the height of the Cold War, I was stationed in West Germany with an RAF Tornado squadron.

    Suffering from Post Traumatic Stress having saved the life of a colleague following an explosion, I was filled with an acute sense of injustice at the way the world operated.

    This was Thatcher’s Britain, the miner’s strike, rioting on the streets, section 28 and a war in Northern Ireland.

    I would lose myself in political books trying to discover a more caring model of society, one in which people were treated with respect no matter who they were.

    I already knew that I was transgender, even if I didn’t have a name for it at that point. I know that there was something about my identity that just didn’t feel right.

    The mental anguish of my gender dysphoria coupled with the post-traumatic stress led to depression, and then self-harming and suicide attempts.

    As I became more aware of what my trans identity meant I realised that any political ambitions that I might have had, were out of the question, with politicians being outed for their sexuality what chance did a bisexual transgender person have.

    Even when I came out in 2015 I was still terrified that by being true to myself that I would lose everything, my career in football, my family and most of all, my children.

    By being true to myself I’ve lost a lot, my entire family turned their backs on me at the very moment that I needed them most, but my children have been amazing and I regularly see my two youngest kids.

    When I came out I faced a choice, to either hide or to stand up and try to make a difference.

    I began speaking about my journey and very soon found myself speaking at venues like Wembley Stadium and the TUC.

    My story moved people, not because it was unusual but because it included universal messages of fear, loss and redemption.

    I was offered a job in television and I saw this as an opportunity to continue the work that I’d done years before with my newspaper, to educate and inspire people to change the world around them.

    In 2016 I was approached to stand for local political office but was barred from this opportunity unless I gave up the TV work and so, reluctantly, I had to decline.

    And then Theresa May called a snap general election, the plans that I’d had to potentially stand in 2020 were thrown into overdrive and I declared an interest in becoming a candidate.

    The country needs a change, years of austerity have left whole communities desperate and lost.

    I’ve been out on the streets of Brighton, speaking to voters and they feel isolated and unrepresented by the Tory government.

    The reception to me, as a trans woman, has been positive with many declaring that it’s time for greater diversity in parliament.

    The time is right, the time is now and we must all work together to achieve a more caring, more diverse society where everyone can live free from fear and where no one suffers from prejudice regardless of their gender, sexuality, gender identity, race, religion, disability or wealth.

    And that is why I am standing to be a Labour Party candidate.

     

    Opinions expressed in this article may not reflect those of THEGAYUK, its management or editorial teams. If you’d like to comment or write a comment, opinion or blog piece, please click here.

  • Politicians’ views on homosexuality aren’t necessarily a barrier for the LGBT community

    Politicians’ views on homosexuality aren’t necessarily a barrier for the LGBT community

    In a flash poll taken by THEGAYUK, readers were split on whether a politician’s views on gay sex were an important consideration to them.

    CREDIT: Ocus-Focus-bigstock

    When asked if a politician’s views of what LGBT people do or don’t do in bed was a sin, an equal number of those surveyed answered yes and no. A flash poll undertaken by THEGAYUK showed that 47 percent of people thought that a politician’s views on the subject was an important factor to consider, whilst 47 percent did not. Six percent were unsure.

    The poll comes after the leader of Liberal Democrats, Tim Farron was asked about his views on homosexuality. The committed Christian has been asked over and over on whether he considers homosexuality sinful.

    Channel 4 News’ Cathy Newman asked him four times on the subject during two separate interviews. It was only during a parliamentary debate in the House of Commons, where he was asked by Tory backbencher Nigel Evans on whether he thought being gay was a sin, the Westmorland and Lonsdale MP answered,

    “I do not.

    “I tell you what, I am very proud to have gone through that lobby behind him there in the Coalition Government where the Liberal Democrats introduced gay marriage, equal marriage and, indeed, did not go as far as it should have done in terms of recognising transgender rights.

    Replying to our poll, would be members of the electorate were keen to point out that “straight answers” to a simple question would be “refreshing” and that religious views would only be a problem if politicians wanted to “enforce that belief through politics”.

    Guardian writer, Owen Jones however Tweeted,

    “Tim Farron refusing to say whether gay sex is a sin is horribly damaging to young LGBT people struggling with their sexuality.

    “So many LGBT people fear rejection by society. Hearing a national politician refuse to say whether gay sex is sinful causes hurt.”

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • UKIP candidate: “I don’t want any LGBT community”

    Ever heard of Gisela Allen? Probably not. This morning, however, she became a viral internet sensation after a weird diatribe of what she wants and doesn’t want for her country, appeared in her local paper.

    clydebank-post-ukip-1492857413

    Gisela Allen is a UKIP candidate for a council seat in Garscadden/Scotstounhill, Scotland. After being asked by a reporter, “Why do you want to be a councillor?” for the Clydebank Post  Allen laid out her wishes.

    So what’s the take out from her wish list? She wants:

    The death penalty, specifically the guillotine, (not hanging),

    Mums to stay at home to look after their children,

    The reopening of public toilets,

    To close golf courses (they’re an environmental threat),

    Children on horses,

    No plastic bags, they’re threats to dolphins and animals…

    Classrooms for classes,

    No sex ed,

    People to work until they’re 70,

    No buses passes for older people,

    Oh, and “I do not want any LGBT community”.

     

    Yep.

     

  • Jack Monroe to stand in the next General Election

    Writer and activist Jack Monroe is planning to stand in the next General Election and vows to fight for the poor, the disenfranchised and the let-down.

    CREDIT: Twitter

    Jack Monroe is to stand in the snap General Election called by Prime Minister Theresa May on Tuesday. Over a series of tweets the writer, activist and food blogger outlined plans to represent the “poor, the disenfranchised, the let-down.”

    Mx Monroe, who recently won a libel case against Katie Hopkins also said, that she’d “do the best I can for the most people” and that priorities would include, “Healthcare. Services for people with disabilities. Living standards. Jobs. Decent homes. That everyone feels valued in society”.

    https://twitter.com/MxJackMonroe/status/854779350192984064

    https://twitter.com/MxJackMonroe/status/854779431281471489

    https://twitter.com/MxJackMonroe/status/854780102542073856

    https://twitter.com/MxJackMonroe/status/854780303033982977

     

    At the time of writing, it’s not clear which party or constituency Mx Monroe will run for in the election on 8th June 2017.

    THEGAYUK reached out to Jack Monroe for comment.

  • Tim Farron does NOT consider being gay a sin

    The Liberal Democrat leader, Tim Farron has said that he does not think that being gay is a sin.

    • Tim Farron said that he did not think that being gay was a sin.

    • He said he was proud that the Liberal Democrats were able, with the Coalition Government to introduce same-sex marriage.

    • He said there was still so much more to be done and called for an “open, tolerant, united society”.

    Tim Farron has answered that he does not consider homosexuality a sin, following a direct questioning in the House of Commons today.

    Asked by Tory backbencher Nigel Evans on whether he thought being gay was a sin, the Westmorland and Lonsdale MP answered,

    “I do not. I tell you what, I am very proud to have gone through that lobby behind him there in the Coalition Government where the Liberal Democrats introduced gay marriage, equal marriage and, indeed, did not go as far as it should have done in terms of recognising transgender rights.

    “There is much more to be done and if we campaign in this election – as we will – for an open, tolerant, united society then we need to make sure that we do not in any way be complacent about LGBT rights not just here but in other parts of the world.

    “In particular what is going on in Chechnya at the moment.”

    The answer comes after the Lib Dem leader failed to answer Cathy Newman’s question on Channel 4 News.

    Ms Newman asked,

    “A while back I asked you if you thought that homosexuality was a sin and you struggled to answer.

    “Now you’ve had a while to consider that question, what is the answer?”

    Mr Farron replied, “I don’t think I struggled to answer it at all, Cathy. I think I’m not in the position to make theological announcements over the next six weeks.

    “I’m not going to spend my time talking theology or making pronouncements.”

  • Leader of Lib Dems couldn’t answer this question about homosexuality

    The leader of the Liberal Democrats Tim Farron has yet again dodged a question about his thoughts on the morality of homosexuality.

    Tim Farron, leader of the Liberal Democrats has once again failed to answer whether he thinks homosexuality is a sin or not, during an interview on Channel 4 with Cathy Newman.

    Mr Farron who identifies as a Christian was unable to answer a question on whether he thought homosexuality was a sin. Ms Newman asked the 46-year-old politician, “A while back I asked you if you thought that homosexuality was a sin and you struggled to answer.

    “Now you’ve had a while to consider that question, what is the answer?”

    Mr Farron replied, “I don’t think I struggled to answer it at all, Cathy. I think I’m not in the position to make theological announcements over the next six weeks.

    “I’m not going to spend my time talking theology or making pronouncements.”

    The question follows on from an interview in 2015 where she asked, “Do you think as a Christian, that homosexual sex is a sin?” He was so evasive with his answer, Ms Newman asked him three times.

    In an interview with GQ in 2016, Tim Farron revealed that he joined the Liberal Democrats, because of his gay friends saying,

    “One of the reasons I joined the liberals was because of lesbian and gay rights. Friends of mine were gay and I saw how they were treated and bullied. I want a society where people are valued for who they are.”

    Farron has repeatedly had his stance on gay relationships questioned after abstaining on the UK’s same-sex marriage vote in 2013.