Asked by: Lord Lucas (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by the Minister of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government on 15 October (HC7508), whether (1) the transgender pride flag, and (2) the bisexual pride flag, benefit from deemed consent under Class 7 of Schedule 3 to The Town and Country Planning (Control of Advertisement) (England) Regulations 2007; and whether this is reflected in any guidance issued.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Flag advertisements which benefit from deemed consent are set out in Class 7 of Schedule 3 to The Town and Country Planning (Control of Advertisement) (England) Regulations 2007. Guidance is set out in Flying flags: A plain English guide.
Asked by: Lord Lucas (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, with regard to the decision to display bisexual pride flags at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office for Bisexual Awareness Week in September, whether an equality impact assessment or analysis was produced to assess the impact on people of other sexual orientations or gender identities; and what plans they have to display other pride flags within the next 12 months.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
The FCDO is committed to championing the rights of LGBT+ individuals globally. This year, for Bisexual Awareness Week, the FCDO flew the Bisexual flag within the grounds of our HQ in London to show support to our colleagues. An equalities assessment was made against our Public Sector Equality Duty commitments which concluded that this would raise awareness and promote tolerance. The FCDO stands for inclusivity, diversity and acceptance, both at home and abroad. We celebrate the diversity of our staff throughout the year and recognise various anniversaries, events or international days which can include flying flags or lighting up the FCDO in relevant colours.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of providing a list of LGBTQ+ friendly travel destinations in travel guidance to British citizens.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds
FCDO travel advice provides information to help British nationals, including those who are LGBT+, make informed decisions about their foreign travel.
No travel is completely safe. We try to make objective judgements and we will advise against travel when we judge that the level of risk is unacceptably high.
We recognise, however, that LGBT+ people can face particular risks and challenges due to the stigma, discrimination and even violence that they can experience around the world. This is why the FCDO, in addition to country-specific advice, has worked with LGBT+ people and organisations to develop specific gov.uk guidance for LGBT+ people travelling abroad: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/lesbian-gay-bisexual-and-transgender-foreign-travel-advice.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the risk of (a) abuse, (b) harassment and (c) violence faced by LGBTQI+ people in immigration detention centres.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
It is vital that detention and removal are carried out with dignity and respect, and we take the welfare and safety of people in our care very seriously. We will not tolerate any form of discrimination against those who are detained in our immigration removal estate. We keep the level of risk under regular review and will take robust action against anyone who is found not to have behaved appropriately.
In order to effectively support individuals in immigration detention who identify as LGBT+ there is detailed published guidance for all staff working in immigration removal centres (IRCs). Detention Services Orders 2/2016 ‘Lesbian, gay and bisexual detainees in the detention estate’ and 11/2012 ‘Care and Management of Transsexual Detainees’ set out the actions and safeguarding processes that are undertaken in IRCs to ensure that the needs of LGBT+ individuals are identified and appropriately met.
Asked by: Laura Kyrke-Smith (Labour - Aylesbury)
Question
To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of including asexuality as a protected characteristic in the Equality Act 2010.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds
We have no plans for including asexuality as a protected characteristic in the Equality Act 2010.
The Equality Act 2010 covers discrimination in employment, the provision of goods, services, and public functions, housing, premises, education, transport, occupational pensions, clubs, and associations. It prohibits discrimination on the basis of nine characteristics, including sex and sexual orientation. Sexual orientation is defined under the Act as a person’s orientation towards persons of the opposite sex, the same sex, or of either sex. The Act also prohibits discrimination based on the perception that someone has a protected characteristic, for example, that they are heterosexual, lesbian, or gay when they are not.
Asked by: Laura Kyrke-Smith (Labour - Aylesbury)
Question
To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, whether it is her policy to ban conversion therapy for (a) asexual, (b) bisexual, (c) intersex and (d) nonbinary people.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds
This Government’s position is that conversion practices are abuse. Such practices have no place in society and must be stopped.
Through the development of the Conversion Practices Bill, this Government will deliver on our manifesto commitment to bring forward a full, trans-inclusive ban on conversion practices, implementing key safeguards for LGBT people.
We are committed to listening to all viewpoints as this work progresses, and to engaging with a wide range of stakeholders, organisations and all LGBT communities.
Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall and Camberwell Green)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure HIV health promotion campaigns are (a) culturally appropriate and (b) effective in reaching (i) under-served and (ii) at-risk communities.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne
The Government is committed to ensuring equality and equity of access to HIV prevention and treatment for all. We have commissioned officials for advice on how to progress the development of a new HIV Action Plan, which we aim to publish by summer 2025. This will include seeking advice from our community and voluntary sector partners on how best to engage and consider the specific needs of under-served and at-risk communities.
HIV Prevention England (HPE) is the national HIV prevention programme for England. It delivers a nationally co-ordinated programme of HIV prevention work for communities at higher risk of transmission such as black African heterosexual communities and gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men. HPE is funded by the Department, who have appointed the Terrence Higgins Trust, a national charity who campaign about, and provide services related to, sexual heath and HIV, to deliver the programme from 2021 to 2025.
The programme has recently hosted their 6th biannual conference, which brought together over 200 representatives from the HIV sector to share ideas, best practice, and research, drawing attention to the need to prioritise impactful and equitable interventions, considering the specific needs of those at greater risk. The presentations, workshops and materials will be made available online at HPE’s website next week.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 22 July 2024 to Question 454 on Asylum: LGBT+ People, when her Department last reviewed the level of the risk of (a) discrimination, (b) harassment and (c) violence towards LGBTQ+ people seeking asylum in immigration detention centres.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The level of risk for LGBT+ individuals within immigration detention is subject to ongoing monitoring. As set out in Detention Services Order 02/2016 ‘Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Detainees in the Detention Estate’, Immigration Removal Centre suppliers undertake regular equality monitoring and trend analysis for residents with protected characteristics.
Asked by: Lord Strathcarron (Non-affiliated - Excepted Hereditary)
Question
To ask His Majesty's Government which abbreviation they prefer to use when referring collectively to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government uses the term LGBT+. This reflects the breadth and diversity of the community as well as the preferences of most LGBT+ people. This term also resonates with language used by international partners and institutions. Whilst this is the Government's standard terminology, there may be occasions where it is appropriate to utilise variations that reflect a different focus.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment she has made of the level of the risk of (a) discrimination, (b) harassment and (c) violence towards LGBTQ+ people seeking asylum in immigration detention centres.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
It is vital that detention and removal are carried out with dignity and respect, and we take the welfare and safety of people in our care very seriously. We will not tolerate any form of discrimination against those who are detained in our immigration removal estate. We keep the level of risk under regular review and will take robust action against anyone who is found not to have behaved appropriately.
In order to effectively support individuals in immigration detention that identify as LGBT+ there is detailed published guidance for all staff working in immigration removal centres (IRCs). Detention Services Orders 2/2016 ‘Lesbian, gay and bisexual detainees in the detention estate’ and 11/2012 ‘Care and Management of Transsexual Detainees’ set out the actions and safeguarding processes that are undertaken in IRCs to ensure that the needs of LGBT+ individuals are identified and appropriately met.