‘I will not stop shouting' about LGBT rights, says MP in ‘gayest Parliament'
Kate Osborne described receiving 'horrific' abuse when she tried to arrange a pride event in her Jarrow and Gateshead East constituency near Newcastle, but promised the LGBT+ community 'will not be pushed back in the closet'.
The MP, who said she came out as a lesbian 40 years ago, told the Commons on Thursday: 'It's an honour to be speaking in the main chamber in this Parliament, as Mr Speaker (Sir Lindsay Hoyle) told us the other night at his reception, the gayest Parliament in the world.
' LGBT History Month has never been more needed than it is right now, with politicians of all political stripes here in the UK, in Europe and of course, in America, trying to tear down the few protections LGBTQ+ have, attack our rights, and rewrite history.
'Our history and our activism needs to be shouted about. We will not be silenced.
'We will not be erased. We will not be pushed back in the closet and our history will be celebrated and remembered.
'We need people to continue to be brave enough to shout 'I am here'.
'I'm a lesbian, and I'm saying that in the 'mother of all Parliaments', and I will not stop shouting about it.
'Diversity is what makes us wonderful, it gives us strength.
''Dyke' is no longer an insult but a badge that I wear with pride, just like my 'she/her' pronoun badge.'
According to an independent website set up to record the number of LGBT+ MPs, at least 75 MPs identify as LGBT+.
The lgbt.mp website listed 66 MPs in the last parliament, before last year's general election.
We must celebrate our history and remind people that we have always been here, that trans people have always existed,
Kate Osborne
'We must celebrate our history and remind people that we have always been here, that trans people have always existed,' Ms Osborne said, speaking to mark LGBT+ History Month.
'But we also have to remember the lessons of our activism – remember and listen to those who lived those fights and learn from them in order to defend our community from this latest wave of attacks.'
She said she faced a 'barrage of abuse' while helping to set up a pride event in Hebburn led by local campaigners.
Ms Osborne warned flags were 'ripped down' and a newspaper removed an article about the event as a result of abusive comments.
She also said she and campaigners 'received some horrific homophobic and lesbophobic abuse online and in real life'.
The MP added 'note of caution around our Government's own policy and rhetoric on puberty blockers', saying: 'I believe this decision is putting people's health at risk.'
The Government introduced an indefinite ban on puberty blockers last year for children experiencing gender dysphoria after a review led by Baroness Cass found the quality of studies around their use was 'poor', with plans underway to set up a clinical trial.
Equalities minister Dame Nia Griffith had earlier said: 'For most people under the age of 40, it's almost inconceivable to imagine a society in which LGBT+ were not visible and integrated.
'Most, if not all of us, have LGBT+ family, friends and colleagues. In this very chamber, one in 10 members identify as LGBT+, a world record for any Parliament as far as we know.'
She later added: 'As history shows us, progress is not static.
'New challenges will always emerge, and hard-won rights must not only be cherished but guarded.
'That's why the Government is committed to upholding Britain's long-standing record of protecting the rights of individuals, and ensuring the Equality Act protects everyone.
'But there are others who would gladly reverse this, returning to a time where discrimination was permissible, even empowered under the law.
'We must be ever mindful of such intentions and remember from our history why we do not wish to revisit such times. Lawful discrimination, Section 28, vilification and rejection by wider society are history, and they must remain such.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
John Swinney isn't bothered 'in the slightest' by SNP legal battles... paid for by YOU
John Swinney has been accused of being cavalier with public money after claiming he is not bothered 'in the slightest' about two high-profile law suits against SNP ministers. The First Minister said being sued for apparently ignoring the UK Supreme Court and by Alex Salmond 's widow were 'part of the fabric of government life in Scotland'. Speaking to STV's Scotland Tonight, Mr Swinney refused to comment on the substance of the actions as 'live proceedings' were involved. But asked if he was 'bothered about them', he said: 'Not in the slightest. They're part of the fabric of government life in Scotland, and I've got to deal with them all.' His comments coincided with claims Scotland's public sector has 'squandered' £406million on legal services in just the last three years. Scottish Conservative finance spokesman Craig Hoy said: 'John Swinney might arrogantly be dismissing the prospect of this latest legal action, but he will not be the one footing the bill. 'The SNP and their army of quangos have blown over £400million in legal fees in recent years and the First Minister doesn't seem bothered about wasting yet more taxpayers' money. 'If they finally just implemented the Supreme Court verdict, then at least one of these cases would be avoided.' For Women Scotland, who beat the Scottish Government in court earlier this year, have launched fresh legal action against John Swinney's government Alex Salmond's widow Moira is reviving a £3 million claim her late husband began in 2023 For Women Scotland (FWS) last week took legal action against SNP ministers for failing to enforce April's Supreme Court ruling on gender. The group, whose previous challenges led to the judgment, wants a judge to strike down policies on the housing of trans people in jail and transgender pupils using single-sex school toilets. The Supreme Court ruled biological sex, not gender choice, determines a person's rights under UK equality law. But Mr Swinney has failed to act, claiming he has to wait for updated advice from the UK Equalities and Human Rights Commission. Critics accuse him of playing for time to avoid a row within the SNP before May's Holyrood election. A motion to the SNP conference in October claims the 'reductionist' ruling 'rolls back progress for all women'. It also emerged on Sunday that Alex Salmond's widow Moira is reviving a £3million compensation claim her late husband began in 2023. The ex-First Minister took the action over the Scottish Government's botched 2018 in-house probe into sexual misconduct claims. The investigation was later ruled unlawful, unfair and 'tainted by apparent bias'. Meanwhile, figures from 168 public bodies revealed £406million was spent on legal services over three years. The Scottish Government had the largest bill, at £89million, followed by NHS Scotland at £62million. Tory MSP Stephen Kerr, who obtained the costs under freedom of information, said the total sum was 'staggering' given the state of public services. A government spokesman said: 'The Scottish Government and NHS Scotland are required to take legal advice on a range of issues.'
Times
an hour ago
- Times
Nature is not the enemy of housebuilders
The government appears to have gone to war against nature and beauty in its attempt to get Britain building again. We should stop worrying about the environment, get rid of the bugs, spiders and bats and focus instead on what matters: creating more housing, employment and renewable energy. That means prioritising solar farms over wildflowers and faster transport links over forests. The thinking seems to be that these are elitist luxuries we can no longer afford. Rachel Reeves, the chancellor, summed it up when she said last month she cared more about getting young families on to the housing ladder than 'protecting some snails'. She is evidently considering a second planning bill that would make it far harder for environmentalists to hold up infrastructure projects, limit protection for many species and curtail judicial reviews to block projects. Ed Miliband is also determined that his quest for net zero will not be dragged down by farmers being subsidised to grow food locally and create wetlands when they could be installing solar panels. And earlier this year, Angela Rayner removed the word 'beautiful' from the national planning policy framework to speed up construction. • Rachel Reeves to cut 'bats and newts' in boost to developers They have a point. You only have to mention the £100 million 'bat tunnel' for HS2 and everyone agrees it was an egregious waste of money. The green lobby has at times appeared out of control, prioritising hazel dormice over our children's future; the nimbys seem selfish for wanting to preserve their woodlands and views; and, as 40C summers in Europe become the new norm, we need more energy-efficient solutions. Yet does Labour really need to turn nature into the enemy? Why this supposition that in order to grow we have to bulldoze beauty and sacrifice wildlife, or that getting to net zero in 2050 matters more than supporting a green and pleasant, environmentally friendly countryside? Travelling in Uzbekistan last week, a central Asian country whose economy is booming, it was clear in Tashkent that they are determined to backtrack on years of pummelling nature in the Soviet era. They are focused on rebuilding the capital, creating offices and housing for the country's burgeoning population, but also ensuring that the city is covered in trees, parks and neatly tended flower gardens. The result is stunning. The city is shaded from the ferocious sun, there is barely any litter among the flower beds and people want to walk to work and socialise in the greenery in the evenings. In Samarkand, tourists are flocking back as beauty is prioritised. Yet nature and beauty in the UK are increasingly seen as obstacles. Conservation charities insist the 'builders versus blockers' narrative wrongly frames wildlife as being in conflict with economic growth. Bats and great crested newts are a factor in only 3 per cent of planning appeals, they say. The Home Builders Federation claims a lack of planning staff in councils causes worse delays. • Emma Duncan: Planning regulation is bogged down by newts This system isn't helping housebuilders, nor is it protecting the most valuable elements of our landscape. We have lost half of our biodiversity since 1970, according to the most recent State of Nature report, birds, pollinators, micro-organisms and flora bearing the brunt. Native dormice are now threatened with extinction. 'Clean energy' is this government's mantra but dirty rivers may be its heritage, destroyed by untreated sewage and factory farming. Yet ministers appear to care as little as the last lot, despite the Labour manifesto stating that Britain 'is one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world'. Ironically, before this government's latest interventions, environmentalists and construction companies had been edging towards consensus. The Wildlife Trusts' chief executive, Craig Bennett, is a surprise supporter of housebuilders, businesses and investors struggling with so many changing and contradictory schemes, such as demanding that housing developments factor in biodiversity net gains (BNG), then scrapping that for small sites, which cover 70 per cent of new builds. 'Thriving ecosystems and wildlife provide multiple co-benefits, promote solutions to climate challenges such as flooding and drought, improve health and wellbeing and create new jobs,' he says. If smaller developments are exempt from BNG, an area the size of 35,000 football pitches of nature-rich planting will be lost. A new report by the think tank Policy Exchange shows that building beautiful, harmonious council estates intertwined with nature is the best way forward. They encourage community pride, discourage crime and are often more cost-effective. The world's first council estate, the Boundary Estate, built in the 1890s in east London, was made up of tree-lined avenues and is, unsurprisingly, still more sought after than grey, dense housing and tower blocks. Nimbys are far less likely to reject any characterful additions that enhance their neighbourhood and provide new green spaces, such as Camley Street Nature Park, once a coal drop between King's Cross and St Pancras but for the past 40 years a haven for birds and insects. Beauty shouldn't be the preserve of rich Cotswolds estates. Great crested newts don't need to be eliminated and ancient woodland hacked down in this government's desire for a great leap forward. Nature is not the enemy; incorporate it into a simplified planning code with high environmental standards and it may be the solution. It could encourage better mental health, boost our listless productivity, prevent nimbyism, counter climate change, promote community adhesion and nurture us all, including the dormice.
BBC News
2 hours ago
- BBC News
Jarrow and Gateshead East MP investigated by standards watchdog
A Labour MP is under investigation for allegedly breaching Parliament's expenses Osborne, the Jarrow and Gateshead East MP, is being investigated by the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (Ipsa) for her spending on travel and subsistence costs, as well as "miscellaneous costs and financial assistance".Osborne, who is disabled, said the inquiry was centred on her use of taxis following an operation to her spine in said using taxis for commuting or carrying luggage had been recommended by Parliament's health service in 2023, with increased support after the medical procedure. Osborne said: "Whilst this operation was a success it has not helped my disability, it has highlighted other issues and I am afraid has left me still in a lot of pain which the consultant has said will be for the rest of my life."She is the second Labour MP to be investigated by Ipsa this year, after the watchdog opened an inquiry into spending by Tahir Ali in the MP for Birmingham Hall Green and Moseley, faces an investigation into spending on "office costs, travel and accommodation". 'Acted within rules' Osborne, who has been an MP for six years, said she had met Ipsa's compliance officer last week to discuss her use of also said she would "fully comply" with the investigation and was "confident" it would show she had "acted within rules and followed the advice" she had been given."I want my constituents to know that my priority is, has been and always will be to fight for you, and do my best to represent you in Parliament and in the constituency."In its announcement of the investigation, Ipsa said: "No further information will be published until the investigation has concluded." Follow BBC North East on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
