THEGAYUK

Tag: UK

  • COMMENT: GREEN: A Party For The Common Good

    I’m obviously not here to tell you who to vote for. I’m not even going to try and persuade you into voting Green.

    But I am going to share some important policies the Green party have to offer, and not only from an LGBTIQ stand point. Although, from a gay man’s perspective, The Green Party are standing up for our rights in many amazing ways.

    “For The Common Good,” is their slogan, and it rings true throughout their manifesto. To me this simple statement is somewhat empowering. It doesn’t segregate between social class, gender, religion, sexual orientation, disability – it encompasses everyone together. They are treating us all as equal, as the United Kingdom we are.

    Let us start with an important issue doing the rounds within the debates: immigration. Other parties are stabbing at this issue and the effect it is having on our government, on our own personal taxes. Yes, it is an issue but, in my opinion, it’s down to a flaw in how our benefit system operates, not the immigrants claiming them. I don’t begrudge foreigners seeking solace within our welcoming nation, I don’t want to condemn them to the life they were desperate to flee from. The Green Party agrees.

    They propose a reworking of the benefits system by controlling immigration fairly and respecting every immigrant individually for the contribution they make to our nation. In terms of immigration from an LGBTIQ perspective, the party desperately want to end the detention of LGBTIQ (and other) asylum seekers and the notion of disbelief that often denies asylum seekers refugee status.

    In regards to foreign and national civilians, they seek to double child benefits and raise a pension that people can live on realistically. In the long term, for the common good, the party aim to unite tax and benefit in a Basic Income system. This scheme will cover everyone, again respecting us all as equals.

    The NHS is another huge playing field when it comes to the debating parties, and rightly so. It is an important offering the UK holds and requires a delicate yet stable approach to maintain it’s future. The Green Party wants to end the privatisation that has started to appear and provide it with the proper funding it deserves. They also want to introduce free social care to the elderly and aim to give more time, funding and effort into the tackling of mental health.

    Other parties have ignored such medical issues, by cutting funding to the likes of the mental health services and certain out-reach programmes, which have had some cruel effects on our LGBTIQ community. Additionally the party want to end other NHS cuts, which have undermined HIV services and made it harder for trans people to access gender reassignment assistance. Plus, another bid in our favour concerns giving blood. They want to reduce the current 12-month deferral period and base each case specifically on the individual wanting to donate.

    The Green Party stands to help us elsewhere, and all other equality issues. One amazing bullet point they are prompting calls for mandatory diversity and equality lessons in schools. This will step up to combat all forms of prejudice based bullying and teach important lessons of acceptance to children from primary school ages. They also propose a requirement for the police to employ diversity liaison officers whose main responsibility will cover a prevention action on crimes originating in discrimination of any kind. As well, they seek to tackle the topic of institutional racism within our current justice system.

    In terms of women’s rights, they have suggested a UK wide strategy to tackle violence against women – concerning domestic violence, rape, sexual abuse and trafficking. This is alongside other women’s rights battles they want to challenge including equal pay for both sexes; a reworking of sexism in the media particularly with the likes of “lads mags” and their availability, plus making it illegal to stop nursing mothers feeding their babies in public spaces.

    They strongly invite an end to stigma in the workplace towards any minority, from everything and everyone covering race to disability. This bracket stretches to the teaching profession where the party wants to introduce comprehensive training for all educational staff on diversity and inclusion issues. Elsewhere in the classroom the party propose the teaching of HIV, sex and relationship education with an inclusion of LGBTIQ relationships. Adding a requirement of every school to have an anti-bullying programme explicitly combating homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying.

    I am not telling you to vote for The Green Party, but I invite you to read their manifesto, which offers relief to battles that do concern the LGBTIQ community. They want to take us forward and treat us with the equal rights we deserve. We are no different, we deserve our say, and The Green Party are a good ally. Please read their manifesto and decide for yourself, for the common good.

    by Mark Goggin

    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.

  • Welsh Lib Dems: “Embed Gender Awareness” In Teacher Training

    This evening, the Welsh Assembly has voted in favour of calls by the Welsh Liberal Democrats to explore the feasibility of establishing a gender identity clinic in Wales.

    Welsh Lib Dem AMs proposed an amendment in the Welsh Assembly to the Welsh Government’s Annual Equality Report which called for an independent feasibility study into establishing a clinic. Wales is the only nation of the UK without its own gender identity clinic, forcing trans patients to travel to England to receive treatment.

    The absence of a Welsh clinic was one of many issues raised by the Welsh Lib Dems in their landmark debate on transgender issues, the first of its kind in the Welsh Assembly, which took place in November 2014.

    An additional Welsh Lib Dem amendment calls on the Government to embed gender awareness training in teacher training courses to help create gender aware learning environments in Welsh schools. This amendment was also passed by the Assembly.

    Peter Black AM, the Welsh Liberal Democrat Shadow Equalities Minister, said:
    “From a lack of local clinics to inadequate housing provision, trans people in Wales are being somewhat left behind. I’m proud that the Welsh Lib Dems are leading the way on improving the experiences of trans people as they use public services.

    “This is an important first step in finally ensuring that Welsh trans people don’t have to travel to the other side of the UK to receive treatment. The Welsh Labour Government previously claimed there isn’t enough demand for a gender clinic in Wales, but did so without any solid basis for their claim.

    “We want Wales to lead the way in creating a fairer society where no-one, no matter who they are and what their gender, faces discrimination in their lives. It won’t happen overnight, but I’m proud we are walking along the right path to equality.”

  • No To Gay Marriage In Northern Ireland For Fourth Time

    The lesbian, gay and bisexual community in Northern Ireland have suffered another blow to their equal rights as the NI Assembly rejects a motion for the fourth time.

    96 MLAs took part in a vote for same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland, 49 of them voted against the Sinn Féin promoted motion, despite a Belfast Telegraph poll in September 2014, showing that a majority of the Northern Ireland population supporting same-sex marriage. 40.1 per cent of those surveyed supported equal marriage, while 39.4% opposed it. 20.5% had no opinion on it either way.

    With Sinn Féin, SDLP and five Alliance MLA’s supporting the proposal, the DUP and Unionists road blocked the bill which would see all LGBs given equality in marriage. All DUP members voted against it and of 53 unionists, just four voted in favour.

    Marriage is a devolved issue for the United Kingdom. Gay couples in England and Wales were afforded their rights on 13th March 2014 and couples in Scotland on 16th December 2014. Couples in Northern Ireland are at this time only permitted to have civil partnerships.

  • Leading UK HIV Specialist, Martin Fisher Dies

    Professor Martin Fisher a leading HIV specialist has died. He was instrumental in field of HIV medicine and research over two decades. (more…)

  • JD Sports “Suspends” Two Workers After Homophobic Slur

    JD Sports “Suspends” Two Workers After Homophobic Slur Aimed At Customers

    Sportswear retailer JD Sports has “suspended” two staff members after a gay couple were allegedly called “battymen”.

    The Evening Standard is reporting that three staff members from a JD Sports store have been “suspended” after one shop assistant allegedly called a gay couple “Battymen”.

    Gavin Matthews, 35, and his boyfriend Craig Hards were reportedly called “battymen”, a slur word used against gay men, as they shopped for new trainers at their local store in Eltham in south-east London.

    Gavin is said to have overheard a male store assistant use the term, which left the couple “mortified”. Mr Matthews also is quoted in saying that he has never been subjected to homophobic abuse in all the time he’s lived in the area, around 30-years.

    After making several complaints to head office, he was told that three members of staff had been “suspended” over the incident pending a full investigation.

    He told the Standard:

    “I was mortified. I have not heard that kind of talk before. I wasn’t expecting to be treated like that as a customer – it was very offensive.

    “My first thought was to go over there and speak my mind. He was totally oblivious to the offence he had caused – he was just standing there laughing.”

    He continued:

    “If I had been a young person, just coming out, then that would have been even more upsetting.”

    Speaking to the Standard Mr Matthews explained the incident:

    “There was this shop assistant in my way and I heard him say to his colleague ‘those battymen over there’. He was laughing away as he stood in the shop doorway.

    “I looked over at his colleague and he was so embarrassed. By this point my partner came back to me to ask what was going on. I thought I was going to get angry but I just left the store. My partner later said he had had worse [abuse] but I said ‘that is unacceptable’. There is no way that someone in a customer service position should get away with that.”

    TheGayUK reached out to JD Sports for comment.

  • Gay Domestic Violence Charity Relocates To Manchester

    The North West will be the base for Broken Rainbow’s main office and as well as new outreach programmes, such as the LGBT Independent Domestic Violence Advocacy (IDVA) role. The Broken Rainbow helpline will still be based in London, giving the charity much wider remit.

    Jo Harvey Barringer, Broken Rainbow’s Managing Director, says:
    “We’ve had such a warm welcome from LGBT groups and organisations here in Manchester and we are so excited to be part of a place with such great LGBT history and community. And as a national charity it is only right that we have a base outside of London.”

    As part of Broken Rainbow’s relocation it has also recruited of its first ever LGBT IDVA in partnership with Manchester City Council. The role’s inaugural incumbent, Tiffany Cunningham, brings a huge amount of experience to the position, and is keen to hit the ground running, ‘We’re keen to provide the service and support that this community needs, and actually deserves’

    The LGBT IDVA’s role will be to offer LGBT victims/ survivors support and assistance, such as help with safety planning and risk assessments, liaising with agencies as well as support through the criminal justice system.

    Last year Broken Rainbow made headlines after it was uncertain that it could continue its services after the government failed to make clear funding options for the year ahead. MP Caroline Lucas said:

    “If Broken Rainbow is forced to close its services as a result of Government cuts, it will mean the loss of a unique service which has made a real difference to the lives of tens of thousands of people. To see it close just at the time when its services are under greatest demand would be perverse and counterproductive.”

    An LGBT specific IDVA service is important because it will enable LGBT victim/survivors, to receive the targeted support that they need, with the reassurance that as a service we fully understand the dynamics of LGBT domestic violence and work in a respectful, confidential and professional manner.

    Jo Harvey Barringer, Broken Rainbow’s Managing Director, says:
    ‘One of the main things our service users ask for is on-going support by a caseworker and with this new IDVA post we will finally be able to offer this service. And although this initial role will be based in Manchester, our hope is that the service will grow and we will be able to host IDVA’s across the UK.’

    Manchester City Council is very excited to be in partnership with Broken Rainbow and is looking forward to collaborate with them and other organisations in the North West in the near future.

  • Stars Back Royal Vauxhall Tavern After New Owners Refuse To Talk About Future

    BAFTA winning writer Stephen Beresford is among those backing performers and punters of the iconic Royal Vauxhall Tavern in a new campaign to safeguard its future, following its recent sale to property developers.

    The launch of the campaign comes in the wake of the shocking closure without notice of the Black Cap in Camden, another venerable London LGBTQ venue.

    Stars of Duckie, the RVT’s biggest weekly crowd puller, and the legendary performer David Hoyle are among those leading the campaign to save the Tavern. Rob Holley, who runs the venue’s popular Push the Button night, is also on board.

    The RVT is believed to be the UK’s longest running LGBTQ venue and recently featured in Beresford’s hit film Pride. A haven before decriminalisation, and a crucial hub during the AIDS crisis, the RVT is today a thriving site of culture, performance and community in South London.

    But since buying up the Tavern in October, new owners Immovate, an Austrian property company – have repeatedly declined to reveal their intentions, or even guarantee the venue’s long-term future as an LGBT+ bar.

    Speaking about the importance of RVT, Beresford said,
    “The RVT is so much more than just a bar. As Pride shows, it has a special role in LGBTQ history and London life; a unique place where different communities can come together.

    “The RVT has always stood out as embodying the true spirit of the LGBTQ movement and it would be a real shame if it lost touch with that heritage. I support the campaign and wish it all the best.”

    The continuing uncertainty has fuelled fears that the Tavern will be closed or transformed out of step with its unique history.

    That has spurred some of the RVT’s most successful acts to join forces with concerned regulars and take things in to their own hands.

    RVT Future is the most high profile of several recent campaigns to date to save well-known London LGBTQ venues that have fallen victim to London’s over-heated property market.

  • THEATRE REVIEW | Rise Like A Phoenix

    ★★ | Rise Like A Phoenix

    Things have changed a great deal since the days of Larry Kramer’s The Normal Heart, Kevin Elyot’s My Night with Reg and Tony Kushner’s brilliant Angels in America. HIV is something we can talk about more openly, people don’t die anymore, and, with treatment, can live a pretty normal life, though there is still a lot of stigma attached to it.

    Paul Emelion Daly’s new play, Rise Like a Phoenix, is billed as a comedy, but, apart from some admittedly hilarious one-liners, it actually takes itself rather seriously, maybe too seriously. As an HIV negative man, maybe I found it hard to identify with the five gay men, all of them HIV-positive, in Daly’s play, but I’m pretty sure that the majority of my HIV positive friends would have a problem too. Too many of the characters were fixated on the blame game, how they acquired the virus, who gave them the virus, and indeed, not giving too much away, much of the story revolved around a love triangle, in which one of the characters had unknowingly given it to one of the men, who then unknowingly gave it to another.

    I was hoping that a new play about HIV would take a more positive stance, but it seemed to me, that, for all the talk of the success of antiretroviral therapy, emotionally the play was still stuck in the 90s, with its reminders of those tombstone adverts. But the whole landscape has changed since then and we live in a far more positive world (in both senses of the word) than we did? Why was there no talk of TasP (Treatment as Prevention), of PEP or PrEP, the once a day pill that stops you getting HIV?

    I’m afraid I found it all rather dispiriting and negative.

    Performances were good, but Tim McArthur’s usually faultless sense of pace seemed to have deserted him this time round and the play dragged for too much of the time.

  • THEATRE REVIEW | Crouch, Touch, Pause, Engage – National Tour

    ★★★★ | Crouch, Touch, Pause, Engage – National Tour

    Gareth Thomas is one of the most successful rugby players ever to take to the field for his country. But in the testosterone filled world of professional rugby, he hides the fact that he is gay, causing him to engage in a secret double life and bringing him to the brink of suicide. But equally, his hometown of Bridgend in Wales is also a place of sadness, as a spate of teen suicides blight the small, close-knit community. Crouch, Touch, Pause, Engage tells the story of both Gareth Thomas and his struggle with his sexuality and the story of two teenage girls from Bridgend, each battling with their own issues.

    Set on a stage resembling a locker room, and utilising only the simplest of props and costumes, each of the six-strong cast played multiple characters and morphed seamlessly from one to another, including each taking turns to play Thomas himself, as they recounted the two intertwined stories. Told in a verbatim style with the script primarily delivered in a direct address to the audience, the writing of Robin Soans had a very natural feel as it was conveyed by the cast, leading to characters who were accessible, felt familiar and who were instantly likeable. From the cast, Rhys ap William and Daniel Hawksford stood out the most, with both delivering solid performances in their various roles. Taking the audience through a number of ‘crisis points’ in both stories, there were a couple of points during the play where I felt myself welling up; but interestingly enough, it was a real shame that the moment when Thomas comes out to his parents was not handled particularly well by Katie-Elin Salt, leaving such a pivotal scene feeling flat and slightly awkward despite the best endeavours of the other cast members.

    The play draws parallels between the personal struggles of Thomas and the young people of Bridgend, demonstrating that even those considered heroes have their personal demons; and showing young people that they are not as isolated or alone as they may think. Dealing with a number of sensitive topics, the play handles them well, and draws a genuine emotional reaction from the audience as well as providing food for thought on many levels, whether that be empathising with the characters or their families on stage or reflecting on their own experiences and emotions.

    Crouch, Touch, Pause, Engage is thought provoking and emotional, with an undeniably strong message of hope and positivity.

    Crouch, Touch, Pause, Engage was reviewed at West Yorkshire Playhouse (www.wyp.org.uk ) and is continuing on its national tour, details of which can be found at http://www.outofjoint.co.uk/production/crouch-touch-pause-engage. You can also read our interview with Gareth Thomas about the production.

  • Third Of Christians Will Not Vote Cameron Over Gay Friendly Stance

    A new survey has revealed that people who identify as Christian have condemned David Cameron’s statement that same-sex marriage was “among his proudest achievements in 2014”

    The poll by ComRes for Premier Christian Radio asked 2,000 potential voters what they thought about gay marriage and how it might affect their decision on voting Conservative in the next general election.

    More than thirty-three percent agreed with the statement, “I would have considered voting Conservative but gay marriage has put me off doing so”. The coalition government, led by David Cameron was instrumental in bringing forward same-sex marriage in his first term as prime minister.

    Same-sex marriage was legalised in England and Wales in 2014 in a landslide victory.

    80 per cent of those asked lambasted the Prime Minister’s statement that same-sex marriage was “among his proudest achievements in 2014”. The claim was made by  the Prime Minister during a Q&A in Wirral, when he said that same-sex marriage had a personal impact. He said, “I did get a lot of letters from men who said, because of the changes you made, I have been able to marry the person I love. That was great.”

  • Mental Health Charity For LGBT+ Youth Boosted By £120K

    Greenwich-based METRO has received nearly £120,000 from the City of London Corporation’s charity, City Bridge Trust, to boost its London-wide mental health programme for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning (LGBTQ) young people.

    Established in 1984, METRO runs community and youth services and is one of London’s few specialist providers of emotional and mental health support to the LGBTQ community. It promotes health, wellbeing, equality and participation through one-to-one counselling, group therapy and assessment, and referral services.

    The charity faces increased demand for mental health services and its Youth Chances research found that 44 per cent of LGBTQ young people have contemplated suicide, while 52 per cent have self-harmed and 42 per cent sought treatment for anxiety or depression.

    Dr Greg Ussher, METRO Chief Executive said:

    METRO is delighted to receive this funding from the City Bridge Trust. The findings from our Youth Chances research and the demand on our existing mental health programme show just how vital this funding is to enable us to support so many more Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning (LGBTQ) young people across London. This investment from the City Bridge Trust gives LGBTQ young people direct access to the essential services when they need them and will save lives.”

    Jeremy Mayhew, Chairman of City Bridge Trust, said:

    Negative attitudes towards these young people make them more likely to experience higher levels of mental health distress than their heterosexual peers. Understanding their needs and providing accessible services during a difficult time in their lives, is vitally important. At City Bridge Trust, we are committed to supporting Metro Centre in breaking down barriers, removing stigma and improving mental health.”

    City Bridge Trust is the grant-making arm of Bridge House Estates, whose sole trustee is the City of London Corporation. It addresses disadvantage by supporting London charities, providing grants totalling around £15 million annually.