LGBT rights in the United Kingdom
The rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland have developed significantly over time.[2] Today, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender rights are considered to be advanced by international standards.[3][4]
LGBT rights in the
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Homosexuality always legal for women; decriminalised for men in:
1967 (England and Wales)
1981 (Scotland)
1982 (Northern Ireland)
Age of consent equalised in 2001
Ability to apply to change legal gender since 2005
Allowed to serve openly since 2000
Sexual orientation and gender identity protections since 2010
Same-sex marriage since 2014 (England and Wales; Scotland)
Same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland since 2020[1]
Civil partnerships since 2005 (nationwide)
Full adoption rights since
2005 (England and Wales)
2009 (Scotland)
2013 (Northern Ireland)
Prior to the formal introduction of Christianity in Britain in 597 AD, when Augustine of Canterbury arrived in Britain, the citizens might have been able to practice homosexuality through the Celtic, Roman and Anglo Saxon periods, though evidence is lacking: for example there are no surviving Celtic written records.[5][6][7] Post 597 AD, Christianity and homosexuality began to clash. Same-sex male sexual activity was characterised as "sinful" but not illegal. Under the Buggery Act 1533 male anal sex was outlawed and made punishable by death. LGBT rights first came to prominence following the decriminalisation of sexual activity between men, in 1967 in England and Wales, and later in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Sexual activity between women was never subject to the same legal restriction.
Since the turn of the 21st century, LGBT rights have increasingly strengthened in support. Some discrimination protections have been in place for LGBT people since 1999, but they were then extended to all areas under the Equality Act 2010. A ban on LGBT individuals serving openly in the armed forces was officially lifted in 2016, though a policy of non-enforcement had been in place since 2000.[8] The age of consent was equalised at 16,[a] regardless of sexual orientation, in 2001. Having been introduced in the 1980s, Section 28, which prohibited the "promotion of homosexuality" by schools and local authorities, was repealed in 2003. Transgender people have had the ability to apply to change their legal gender since 2005. The same year, same-sex couples were granted the right to enter into a civil partnership, a similar legal structure to marriage, and also to adopt in England and Wales. Scotland later followed on adoption rights for same-sex couples in 2009, and Northern Ireland in 2013. Same-sex marriage was legalised in England and Wales, and Scotland in 2014,[9] and in Northern Ireland in 2020.[10][11]
In ILGA-Europe's 2015 review of LGBTI rights, the UK received the highest score in Europe, with 86% progress toward "respect of human rights and full equality" for LGBT people and 92% in Scotland alone.[12] However, by 2020, the UK had dropped to ninth place in the ILGA-Europe rankings with a score of 66% and the executive also expressed concern about a "hostile climate on trans rights fuelled by opposition groups".[13] By 2023, the UK's ranking had fallen further to 17th place, with a score of 53%, falling behind Ireland, Germany and Greece.[14][15] Anti-trans rhetoric has been described as "rife" in the UK media landscape.[16][17][18][19] Meanwhile, 86% of the UK agreed that homosexuality should be accepted by society, according to a 2019 Pew Research Center poll,[20] and a 2017 poll showed that 77% of British people support same-sex marriage.[21]
The 2021 census found that 3.2% of people in England and Wales identified as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or other, and 262,000 people identified as transgender.[22] However, YouGov and Stonewall have argued that polling and census results are likely influenced by under-reporting, and estimate that the actual figure is between 5 and 7%.[23][24] LGBT rights organisations and very large LGBT communities have been built across the UK, most notably in Brighton, which is widely regarded as the UK's unofficial "gay capital", with other large communities in London, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Leeds, Liverpool, Newcastle upon Tyne, Edinburgh, Belfast and Southampton which all have gay villages and host annual pride festivals.
Bias-motivated violence and abuse[edit]
Recorded reports of homophobic abuse in the UK increased from 5,807 in 2014–15 to 13,530 in 2018–19. The number of prosecutions fell from 1,157 to 1,058, which the National Police Chiefs' Council attributed to many cases with a lack of witnesses and evidence, including whether the assault was motivated by the victim's sexual orientation or gender identity or not. "Many of these non-violent offences present less evidential opportunities and victims often feel that there is a barrier between bringing the matter to court and prefer to make police aware of each offence", said a spokesman for the Metropolitan Police Service. North Yorkshire and South Yorkshire saw their reports increase from 172 to 961 and 73 to 375, respectively. The West Yorkshire Police said this increase was in part due to "improvements in the way we record crime and the fact that many victims have the confidence to come forward".[164]
In 2019, the Ministry of Justice revealed that 11 transgender prisoners were sexually assaulted in prisons in England and Wales.[165]
Conversion therapy[edit]
In 2007, the Royal College of Psychiatrists, the main professional organisation of psychiatrists in Britain, issued a report stating that: "Evidence shows that LGBT people are open to seeking help for mental health problems. However, they may be misunderstood by therapists who regard their homosexuality as the root cause of any presenting problem such as depression or anxiety. Unfortunately, therapists who behave in this way are likely to cause considerable distress. A small minority of therapists will even go so far as to attempt to change their client's sexual orientation. This can be deeply damaging. Although there are now a number of therapists and organisations in the US and in the UK that claim that therapy can help homosexuals to become heterosexual, there is no evidence that such change is possible."[177]
A paper written in 2007 by Elizabeth Peel, Victoria Clarke and Jack Drescher stated that only one organisation in Britain could be identified with conversion therapy, a religious organisation called "The Freedom Trust"[178] (part of Exodus International): "whereas a number of organisations in the US (both religious and scientific/psychological) promote conversion therapy, there is only one in the UK of which we are aware". The paper reported that practitioners who did provide these sorts of treatments between the 1950s and 1970s now view homosexuality as healthy, and the evidence suggests that 'conversion therapy' is a historical rather than a contemporary phenomenon in Britain, where treatment for homosexuality has always been less common than in the US.[179]
In 2008, the Royal College of Psychiatrists stated: "The Royal College shares the concern of both the American Psychiatric Association and the American Psychological Association that positions espoused by bodies like the National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality (NARTH) in the United States are not supported by science. There is no sound scientific evidence that sexual orientation can be changed. Furthermore, so-called treatments of homosexuality as recommended by NARTH create a setting in which prejudice and discrimination can flourish."[180]
In 2009, a research survey into mental health practitioners in the United Kingdom concluded that "a significant minority of mental health professionals are attempting to help lesbian, gay and bisexual clients to become heterosexual. Given lack of evidence for the efficacy of such treatments, this is likely to be unwise or even harmful."[181] Scientific American reported on this: "One in 25 British psychiatrists and psychologists say they would be willing to help homosexual and bisexual patients try to convert to heterosexuality, even though there is no compelling scientific evidence a person can willfully become straight", and explained that 17% of those surveyed said they had tried to help reduce or suppress homosexual feelings, and 4% said they would try to help homosexual people convert to heterosexuality in the future.[182]
Conversion therapy in the UK has been described by the BBC as "a fiercely contested topic" and part of a larger "culture war" within the UK.[183] In July 2017, the Church of England's General Synod passed a motion which criticised conversion therapy as "unethical, potentially harmful and having no place in the modern world" and called for "a ban on the practice of conversion therapy aimed at altering sexual orientation."[184][185] In February 2018, a Memorandum of Understanding which had been issued by the United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP) in October 2017 to provide "protection of the public through a commitment to ending the practice of 'conversion therapy' in the UK" was approved by the National Health Service (NHS).[186][187][188] Stonewall has stated that all major counselling and psychotherapy bodies in the UK have joined the NHS in signing the Memorandum condemning conversion therapy.[189]
In October 2017, a church in Anfield in Liverpool was exposed by a Liverpool Echo investigation for offering to "cure" gay people through a three-day starvation programme.[190] Labour MP Dan Carden raised the issue in Parliament, calling for a legislative ban on conversion therapies, which "have no place in 21st Century Britain".[191]
In March 2018, a majority of representatives in the European Parliament passed a resolution in a 435–109 vote condemning conversion therapy and urging European Union member states to ban the practice.[192][193][194] A report released by the European Parliament's Intergroup on LGBT Rights stated that the UK was one of a few areas in the EU which "explicitly banned LGBTI conversion therapies."[195] In July 2018, the UK Government announced as part of their LGBT Action Plan that they will "bring forward proposals" to ban conversion therapy at the legislative level.[196] In a 2018 survey of LGBT people commissioned by the Government, 5 per cent of respondents said they had been offered therapy, with 2 per cent saying they had undergone it.[197]
On 20 July 2020, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced his support for banning conversion therapy throughout the UK, stating "On the gay conversion therapy thing, I think that's absolutely abhorrent. It has no place in civilized society. It has no place in this country."[198]
In September 2020, religious leaders from every major faith came together in "a rare show of unity" to urge the UK government to legislate a ban on conversion therapy.[199][200]
In February 2021, gay actor and broadcaster Stephen Fry called upon the UK government to "stop dithering" and ban conversion therapy.[201]
On 11 May 2021, as part of the State Opening of Parliament, Queen Elizabeth stated that the UK planned to ban conversion therapy. In her 10-minute Queen's Speech, which is prepared by the UK Government, she stated that "measures will be brought forward to address racial and ethnic disparities and ban conversion therapy."[202] However, the Government's plans involve a consultation before any ban is put in place, which led to criticism by campaigners including Stonewall that such delay leaves LGBT groups "at further risk of abuse." This delay will further extend the current three-year wait from when the government first pledged to ban conversion therapy in 2018 and four years since multiple health organisations and patient groups signed a document in 2017 warning all forms of conversion therapy were "unethical and potentially harmful".[203]
On 1 July 2021, it was reported that the UK Methodist Church canon law legally bans conversion therapy and also called upon the UK government to legally ban conversion therapy.[204]
In October 2021, the government began a six-week consultation on how to end conversion therapy, described as "an attempt to change or suppress someone's sexual orientation or gender identity".[205] Minister Liz Truss said "There should be no place for the abhorrent practice of coercive conversion therapy in our society."[205] In December 2021, the government extended the consultation by eight weeks, following criticism and the threat of legal action by the gender-critical group Fair Play for Women.[206] Critics of the proposed legislation say it could criminalise the act of helping someone with gender dysphoria to feel at ease with their birth sex.[206][207] Nikki da Costa, former special adviser to Boris Johnson, said the timing of the consultation was "driven" by an intent to "get a good new story" ahead of an LGBTQ conference in 2022.[206] Nancy Kelley, CEO of Stonewall, described conversion therapy as "abhorrent" and welcomed the extension.[206]
In late March 2022, the UK Government announced its intention to ban conversion therapy for sexual orientation but not for transgender people,[208] despite previously describing all conversion therapy as "abhorrent".[209] As a result, over 100 organisations pulled out of a planned Government-backed equality conference, which was subsequently abandoned.[210] Johnson defended his decision, citing "complexities and sensitivities" regarding gender conversion therapy, with particular attention given to children with gender dysphoria whose parents and counsellors might wish to openly discuss gender without fear of prosecution.[197][209]
On 10 May 2022, the Queen's speech included an announcement of legislation within the coming Parliamentary session to ban conversion therapy within the UK for sexual orientation.[211] In the King's Speech marking the State Opening of Parliament on 7 November 2023, the ruling Conservative government failed to include a ban on conversion therapy in its future plans.[212]
Sex education[edit]
The Public Sector Equality Duty provision of the Equality Act 2010 requires that information regarding bullying based on, among other things, LGBT identity be published and that solutions be found concerning how to counter this issue.[213][214] The first information regarding schools and pupils located in England and English-governed public authorities in Scotland and Wales were published on 6 April 2012.[213][214] In 2013, Ofsted published guidelines concerning how to counter homophobic and transphobic bullying at schools in England.[215] Part of these guidelines included sex and relationships education for LGBT pupils.[215]
On 12 February 2018, the Church of England's Education Office published a policy endorsing sex education which includes, among other things, LGBT education.[216] Concerning sexuality, the policy states "sex education should include an understanding that all humans are sexual beings and that sexual desire is natural. Pupils should be taught that humans express their sexuality differently and that there is diversity in sexual desire".[216] The policy also states that "pupils must be allowed to explore questions of identity and how we value our own identity and the uniqueness of other people. PSHE [Personal, Social, Health and Economic education] must help pupils recognise their true identity, and teach them that our media-framed, market-driven culture that often leads to body image anxiety can be challenged. This issue is the focus of the Bishop of Gloucester's #liedentity campaign which aims to challenge negative body image and encouraging young people to look within to discover true value and beauty."[216]
In July 2018, Education Minister Damian Hinds announced new government regulations concerning sex education. Topics such as mental wellbeing, consent, keeping safe online, physical health and fitness, and LGBT issues will be covered under the new guidelines, which are the first changes to sex education regulations since 2000, and which will be mandatory in all primary and secondary schools in England from September 2020 onward. The move was welcomed by LGBT groups in particular, who cited statistics showing that only 13% of LGBT youth had been taught about healthy same-sex relationships in schools. In addition, parents will retain certain rights to veto sex education lessons, but by the age of 16, the child may attend the lessons regardless of the parents' wishes.[217] The draft guidance states: "By the end of primary school, pupils should know that others' families, either in school or in the wider world, sometimes look different from their family, but that they should respect those differences and know that other children's families are also characterised by love and care for them." The guidance for secondary schools adds: "Pupils should be taught the facts and the law about sex, sexuality, sexual health and gender identity in an age-appropriate and inclusive way... All pupils should feel that the content is relevant to them and their developing sexuality."
This followed reports of some religious schools deliberately avoiding the issue, most notably an Orthodox Jewish school in north London which in 2018 had removed all references to the homosexual victims of Nazi persecution throughout their textbooks.[218] According to the Department of Education, faith-based schools would no longer have a right to opt-out of sex education lessons.[219] In September 2018, the UK's Chief Rabbi, Ephraim Mirvis, agreed to comply with this new policy and published guidelines on how to teach LGBT sex education in British Jewish schools.[220]
In October 2018, The Sunday Times reported that the British Government had decided to grant exemptions to private schools from LGBT-inclusive education.[221] In November 2018, however, both the PSHE Association and Sex Education Forum published a policy road-map which stated,[222] among other things, that "the law requires that Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) is to be taught in all secondary schools in England, and that Relationships Education is to be taught in all primary schools in England."[223] The road-map also detailed 10 steps which will be used to enforce the policy, and also stated that "Health Education will also be mandatory in all government funded schools, which includes content on puberty."[223][222] In February 2019, the Department of Education enacted a statutory guidance policy which will assist schools in England with PSHE when it becomes compulsory in 2020.[224][225]
A measure to make PSHE compulsory received approval from the House of Lords in April 2019.[226] The Department for Education (DfE) published final statutory guidance for teaching Relationships Education, Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) and Health Education in June 2019.[227] The guidelines, which were also published by the House of Commons,[228] require, among other things, acknowledgement of England's laws concerning LGBT rights, including the legalisation of same-sex marriage, and the protection of the "physical and mental well-being" of LGBT children.[227][228] Despite not mandatory until September 2020, schools in England were encouraged to enact the new PSHE curriculum starting in September 2019.[227] In September 2020, the PSHE curriculum went into effect in England's high schools and elementary schools. with high schools also adapting LGBT PSHE sex education.[229]
Wales similarly announced new regulations about sex education in May 2018, which will also discuss LGBT issues in schools. The regulations, expected to come into force in 2022, will be mandatory from Year 7 (age 11–12).[230]
The Scottish National Party's 2016 manifesto supports sex education classes, as well as "equality training" for teachers, that would cover LGBT issues.[231] In November 2018, the Scottish Government announced the implementation of LGBT-inclusive education in the Scottish school curriculum. The move was welcomed by LGBT activists who cited studies that have found that about 9 in 10 LGBT Scots experience homophobia at school, and 27% reported they had attempted suicide after being bullied.[232]
In December 2021, the Welsh Government's Relationships and Sexuality Education Code was criticised by Welsh Conservatives, who claimed that the Labour-led government was following a "woke ideology" and attempting an "indoctrination of children in gender identity ideology".[233]
Ofsted (Office for Standards in Education Children's Services and Skills) assesses the inclusion of LGBT people in policies and the curriculum.
In May 2024, it was formally announced that children under the age of 9 years old within England - would be explicitly banned from sex education classrooms and schools, under new released guidelines and policies.[234]
LGBT rights movement[edit]
Advocacy organisations[edit]
The Homosexual Law Reform Society (HLRS) was established on May 12, 1958, in response to the Wolfenden Report's findings and the government's lack of action in light of the report.[235] HLRS lobbied parliament to act upon the Wolfenden Report findings and for the complete decriminalisation of homosexuality.[235] Their multiple campaigns led to the passing of the Sexual Offences Act 1967.[235]
The Campaign for Homosexual Equality (CHE) started in Manchester as the North Western Homosexual Law Reform Committee (NWHLRC).[236] CHE is a democratic voluntary organisation founded in 1964 with the aim of achieving full legal and social equality for LGBT people in England and Wales.[236]
Role of the Council of Europe[edit]
According to Juris Lavrikovs from ILGA-Europe, the Council of Europe's European Court of Human Rights has been a positive force for LGBT rights, especially with regards to decriminalising same-sex consensual activity, barring discrimination against transgender individuals in employment, equalising the age of consent, enabling LGBT people to serve openly in the military, allowing transgender people the right to marry, employment equality and the including pension right for transgender individuals.[252]
Representation[edit]
Census[edit]
In 2009, the Equality and Human Rights Commission called for the inclusion of a question on sexual orientation in the 2011 census, but this was rejected by the Office for National Statistics who run the census.[259]
In the 2021 census questions on gender, gender identity and sexual orientation were included for the first time.[260] Stonewall supported the move, stating "gathering data on LGBT communities in the UK is a vital step towards building a society where LGBT people are truly accepted, everywhere and by everyone."[261] These provisions were made in the Census (Return Particulars and Removal of Penalties) Act 2019 for England and Wales, and in the Census (Amendment) (Scotland) Act 2019 for Scotland. The guidance to the question "What is your sex?" was subject to a High Court case, led by Fair Play For Women, which found that sex should only be declared per the sex recorded on either a birth certificate or Gender Recognition Certificate, rather than any official document.[262]
Media[edit]
As a national broadcaster, the BBC has been associated with LGBT+ people through its history. In 1938, the BBC broadcast "female impersonator" Douglas Byng, who was closeted at the time of broadcast. In 1957, following the release of the Wolfenden Report, BBC Radio broadcast a special programme titled "The Homosexual Condition" and the subject was discussed on Lifeline and Any Questions? television programmes. In 1965 the BBC postponed the broadcast of The Wednesday Play: Horror of Darkness due to the inclusion of a gay love triangle.[263]
Following the Sexual Offences Act 1967, BBC television representation increased. In 1970, the first ever gay kiss was shown on television, between Ian McKellen and James Laurenson in a performance of Edward II. The first lesbian kiss was shown later in 1974, between Alison Steadman and Myra Frances on the TV show Girl, part of Second City Firsts. In 1987, EastEnders showed the first same-sex kiss on a British soap. In 1995, the show Gaytime TV was broadcast on BBC Two, the first to be primarily targeted at queer audiences.[263]
Music continued to be censored by the BBC throughout the 1970s and 80s. In 1978, Tom Robinson's Glad to be Gay was banned by BBC Radio 1. In 1984, Frankie Goes to Hollywood's Relax was similarly banned from daytime and chart shows.[263]