Pride Month

Debate between Kirsty Blackman and Samantha Niblett

Monday 23rd June 2025 Commons Chamber

[Samantha Niblett (South Derbyshire) (Lab)]

I had not intended to say what I am about to say, before the bit that I did intend to say, but, inspired by the Minister’s comment that coming out matters, I thought I would use this very public forum to say that I am a bisexual woman. Some people know; some do not. I do not wear it like a badge any more than I would expect a heterosexual person to walk around saying, “Hey, guess what, I’m attracted to men”—or women, depending what gender they are, or otherwise.

The reason that I feel compelled to mention that publicly, before I get on to the good bit of my speech—please, somebody, intervene on me—is that I held back on showing my support for the LGBTQ+ community on my Facebook page for fear of retribution ahead of the local elections, when a certain party got into power at Derbyshire county council. Trying to appease that kind of support did not win any votes, so after that happened, I doubled down on what I believe in and who I am. I posted in support of the Day Against Transphobia, Biphobia and Homophobia, and I said, “If you dare make a negative comment, or anything alluding to one, such as, ‘What is a woman?’, you will be blocked from my page, because there’s falling on the right side of history and there’s falling on the wrong side of history, and you are wrong.”

[Kirsty Blackman]

I congratulate the hon. Member on taking this opportunity to say what she has said. It is not easy to say something like that in a Chamber like this. Having done something similar not that long ago, I absolutely respect her, and I join her in celebrating Pride month.