LGBT+ Conservatives

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LGBT+ Conservatives
ChairmanColm Howard-Lloyd
Founded2006
Preceded by
HeadquartersConservative Campaign HQ
4 Matthew Parker Street, London, SW1H 9HQ, England
IdeologyLGBT conservatism
British unionism
Political positionCentre-right
National affiliationConservative Party
Slogan"The LGBT+ Conservative Group"
Website
lgbtconservatives.org.uk

LGBT+ Conservatives is an organisation for LGBT conservatism in the United Kingdom.[1] It is affiliated and is the official LGBT wing of the Conservative Party. The current advocacy group can trace its roots back to the Conservative Group for Homosexual Equality which was later renamed the Tory Campaign for Homosexual Equality. The group was eventually disbanded and the new LGBTory group was formed, changing its name in 2016[2] to LGBT+ Conservatives.

The group campaigns for LGBT rights alongside the main political beliefs and policies of the Conservative Party, which it promotes within the Party, LGBT community, and wider public. Besides this LGBT+ Conservatives campaigns for LGBT candidates,[3][4][5] including through its Candidates' Fund[6] and attends Pride events across the country.[7][8][9] It also organises events related to LGBT rights[10][11] including an annual event with Stonewall at Conservative Party Conference.[12][13] Since its early formation, the organisation has had an impact nationally, within Europe and globally becoming the model and inspiration for LGBTory in Canada.[14]

Activity[]

LGBT+ Conservative members at Pride London

LGBT+ Conservatives has been present at social meet ups, meals and drinks and Pride events across the country.[15] LGBT+ Conservatives host many fundraising events across the UK, and Parliamentary receptions in The Palace of Westminster for members of both the House of Lords and House of Commons. LGBT+ Conservatives' officers also represented the organisation at the then-Prime Minister Theresa May's LGBT Downing Street garden reception.[16]

After the 2017 general election, the group's then-chair Matthew Green was critical of the Democratic Unionist Party, describing the DUP's record on LGBT issues as "appalling".[17] This followed May's announcement that she intended to form a minority government with the DUP. As a result of the hung Parliament arising from the election, May's Conservatives did not have an overall majority, so were reliant on DUP support to govern. The Conservative-DUP agreement was finalised several weeks later, and lasted until Parliament was dissolved in November 2019.

In 2018, the official LGBT+ Conservative account posted a tweet denouncing the views of Conservative MP David Davies on trans people. It later apologised for the tone of the tweet.[18]

Fund[]

LGBT+ Conservatives group disburse campaign funds in support of LGBT+ candidates.[19]

Chairmanship[]

  • 2007–2008: Anastasia Beaumont–Bott[20]
  • 2008–2009: Edward Butler–Ellis
  • 2009–2013: Cllr Matthew Sephton[21]
  • 2013–2017: Colm Howard–Lloyd[22]
  • 2017–2018: Matthew Green[23] - Resigned 14 May 2018[24]
  • 2018–2019: John Cope - Interim Chairman [24]
  • 2019–2020: Colm Howard-Lloyd[25]
  • 2020–present: Elena Bunbury[26]

Patrons[]

LGBT+ Conservatives patrons:[27]

See also[]

  • List of organisations associated with the British Conservative Party
  • List of LGBT-related organisations
  • LGBT rights in the United Kingdom

References[]

  1. ^ "About Us". LGBT+ Conservatives. Archived from the original on 2018-04-11. Retrieved 2018-04-10.
  2. ^ "LGBTory - Proposed change of name". LGBT+ Conservatives. Archived from the original on 2018-04-11. Retrieved 2018-04-10.
  3. ^ "Campaign Day for Stuart Andrew". LGBT+ Conservatives. Archived from the original on 2018-04-11. Retrieved 2018-04-10.
  4. ^ "Campaigning for Mike Freer MP in Finchley". LGBT+ Conservatives. Archived from the original on 2018-04-11. Retrieved 2018-04-10.
  5. ^ "LGBTory Autumn Newsletter 2014" (PDF). LGBTory. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-02-22. Retrieved 2015-02-22.
  6. ^ "LGBTory launches Candidates' Fund". LGBT+ Conservatives. Archived from the original on 17 November 2016. Retrieved 22 February 2015.
  7. ^ Blackhurst, Rob (1 August 2008). "A Rhapsody in Blue". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 22 February 2015.
  8. ^ "LGBTory at Pride in London". LGBT+ Conservatives. Archived from the original on 2018-04-11. Retrieved 2018-04-10.
  9. ^ "Reading Pride". LGBT+ Conservatives. Archived from the original on 2018-04-11. Retrieved 2018-04-10.
  10. ^ "Conservative responses to the persecution of LGBTI people around the World". LGBT+ Conservatives. Archived from the original on 2018-04-11. Retrieved 2018-04-10.
  11. ^ "What should the next government's agenda for international LGBT rights be?". LGBT+ Conservatives. Archived from the original on 2018-04-11. Retrieved 2018-04-10.
  12. ^ "What Matters to LGBT Voters". LGBTory. Archived from the original on 2018-04-11. Retrieved 2018-04-10.
  13. ^ "Conservative Party Conference Fringe Meeting". LGBTory. Archived from the original on 2017-08-17. Retrieved 2018-04-10.
  14. ^ "The 'T' in LGBTory represents Trans AND Tory". Policies. LGBTory. May 15, 2016. Archived from the original on November 15, 2017. Retrieved November 15, 2017. LGBTory was founded in 2015 by a group of Toronto Conservatives who wanted to be a presence at the Toronto Pride parade... When casting about for a name for our new group, we found a similar organization in the UK called LGBTory.
  15. ^ "Conservative gay group launched at Manchester Pride". Pink News. 2009-09-01. Archived from the original on 2010-01-11. Retrieved 2010-05-20.
  16. ^ "Matthew Green: Our new Prime Minister will build a better Britain for LGBT people". Conservative Home. Archived from the original on 2019-04-12. Retrieved 2019-04-12.
  17. ^ "Conservative LGBT activists raise fears over DUP's 'appalling' record on gay rights". The Independent. 10 June 2017. Archived from the original on 26 June 2017. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
  18. ^ "Tory LGBT group sorry over tweet to David Davies". BBC News. 29 January 2018. Archived from the original on 30 October 2018. Retrieved 21 July 2018.
  19. ^ "Yorkshire Tory wrongly described as 'openly gay' after mistaken application to LGBT+ fund". The Yorkshire Post. 18 December 2019. Archived from the original on 19 December 2019. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  20. ^ Blackhurst, Rob (1 August 2008). "A Rhapsody in Blue". Financial Times. Retrieved 22 February 2015.
  21. ^ Roberts, Scott (27 January 2014). "LGBTory Chairman Matthew Sephton steps down from post". Pink News. Retrieved 22 February 2015.[permanent dead link]
  22. ^ "Colm Howard-Lloyd". LGBT+ Conservatives. Archived from the original on 2019-04-12. Retrieved 2019-04-12.
  23. ^ "Stonewall at the Conservative Party Conference". Stonewall. 2017-08-23. Archived from the original on 2019-04-12. Retrieved 2019-04-12.
  24. ^ a b "Appointment of an Interim Chairman". us5.campaign-archive.com. Archived from the original on 2020-10-28. Retrieved 2020-01-08.
  25. ^ "Meet Our New Chairman". Archived from the original on 2019-05-01. Retrieved 2019-05-01.
  26. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2020-10-28. Retrieved 2020-04-04.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  27. ^ "LGBT+ Conservative Patrons". LGBT+ Conservatives. Archived from the original on 22 October 2016. Retrieved 21 August 2016.
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