Tag Archive | UK
OPINION: English marriage law locks out same-sex couples from religious weddings
By Dr Silvia Falcetta Same-sex couples in England and Wales cannot marry in more than 99% of churches, mosques, temples and other places of worship in which different-sex couples can marry. The Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013 granted same-sex couples the opportunity to have a religious marriage, but only when a religious organisation has ‘opted in’ […]
UK: ‘Partisan’ evidence led to curbs on trans treatment
A court ruling that restricted the use of puberty-blocking drugs among under-18s in England was based on “partisan” evidence that mixed fact and opinion, lawyers for the country’s only youth gender clinic told an appeal hearing on Wednesday. Doctors at the London-based clinic stopped prescribing the drugs to new patients, aged below 18, after last […]
More British people now identify as LGB
More British than ever before identify as lesbian, gay or bisexual (LGB), meaning the nation’s gay and bi community grew by more than 15% in a year to reach 1.4 million people, the latest government figures showed on Thursday. An estimated 2.7% of British people aged over 16 defined themselves as LGB in 2019, up […]
UK: Theatres back trans actors for trans roles
A group of British theatres says it will only cast transgender actors in trans roles, joining a heated debate over whether performers must mirror the sexuality or gender identity of LGBT+ characters they play on stage or screen. The ‘Trans Casting Statement‘, signed by over 40 theatres and production companies – including London’s prestigious Royal […]
UK to ban LGBT conversion therapy
Britain’s government said, alongside the Queen’s Speech, it would launch a consultation into how to end practices that aim to change or suppress someone’s sexual orientation or gender identity. (Reuters) – Britain will move to ban conversion therapy, and provide more support to those in the LGBT community who have undergone the treatment, as part […]
UK: PM pledges to exempt prayer from LGBT+ conversion therapy ban
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said prayer for someone exploring their sexual orientation or gender identity will not be criminalised in any conversion therapy ban, as LGBT+ activists and conservative Christians clash over the issue. Johnson said that “appropriate pastoral support (including prayer)” would remain legal, in a letter to the Evangelical Alliance, a […]
UK: Government to ban ‘conversion therapy’ after backlash
Britain’s government promised on Friday to push ahead with a ban on so-called conversion therapy, after three LGBT+ policy advisers questioned ministers’ commitment to fulfilling the pledge, and resigned in protest this week. As other nations outlaw attempts to change people’s sexual orientation or gender identity, Junior Equalities Minister, Kemi Badenoch, angered LGBT+ advocates, by […]
UK: Minister urged to resign over conversion therapy
Britain’s equalities minister should consider stepping down, over the government’s failure to fulfil a pledge to ban so-called conversion therapy, a former LGBT+ policy adviser said on Thursday, after she and two others quit their jobs in protest. The advisers resigned after the minister, Kemi Badenoch, told parliament on Monday [that] the government was still […]
UK: Gender ID – court rules against gov’t in census row
Britain’s High Court on Tuesday ordered the government to change its guidance to people filling out the 2021 census to compel transgender people to give their legally recognised sex, following a challenge from women’s rights activists. The court ordered the government’s Office for National Statistics (ONS) to rewrite its guidelines on how people should describe […]
UK: First LGBT+ retirement home to open
Britain’s first LGBT+ retirement home is set to open in mid-2021, the housing association behind the London riverside apartments said on Tuesday, highlighting a growing market of older people who do not want to be forced back in the closet. There is a critical need for housing for older LGBT+ people, said Anna Kear, chief […]
