I was the only out lesbian MP for 13 years - here's how Parliament has changed
When Dame Angela Eagle decided it was time to come out publicly as gay, there were two people she knew she needed to tell first.
That wasn't simply out of courtesy. It was because the year was 1997, and the reaction to the news from the media had the potential to be explosive.
A general election had just resulted in a landslide victory for Tony Blair. Eagle – a Labour MP since 1992, covering the final stretch of Conservative power that lasted 18 years – became a junior environment minister.
The landscape for LGBTQ+ Brits was tough, typified by the Section 28 law against 'promoting homosexuality' and the devastation of the Aids epidemic. Caustic homophobia was common in the media and broader culture.
Making things harder still, there wasn't much precedent for a gay politician. There had been only two openly gay MPs before, Maureen Colquhoun and Chris Smith – and only the latter had come out publicly by choice.
Smith, who became the new Culture Secretary under Blair, was the first of the two people Eagle decided to tell. She needed advice.
'It took me ages to get a cabinet minister to go out for a meal with me in the evening, where I could talk to him about how he did it and what I should be doing,' she told Metro.
'We knew each other well, and we were having a nice time in this restaurant, and we got all the way through to past the sweet, and I'm thinking, 'How do I, how do I just…'
'In the end, I was thinking, 'Angela, it's taken months for you to get this bloody meeting to ask him his advice, and now here we are, we're nearly at the end of the meal, and you still haven't.'
With thousands of members from all over the world, our vibrant LGBTQ+ WhatsApp channel is a hub for all the latest news and important issues that face the LGBTQ+ community.
Simply click on this link, select 'Join Chat' and you're in! Don't forget to turn on notifications!
'So in the end, I just said it, and he was gobsmacked and pleased and happy to help and talk and things like that.'
It took less time for Eagle to tell the second person: her boss, Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott.
'I got 15 minutes, and I told him, and he said, 'Tell me something I didn't know already, love.'
'And he said, 'Can I give you a hug?' And I said, 'Yes,' and he gave me a hug.'
After a final chat with New Labour supremo Peter Mandelson, she gave an exclusive interview to Suzanne Moore of the Independent ('I didn't want to do it in the Guardian, because I thought they were all a load of public school blokes', she said) and that was that.
Eagle returned to her Wallasey constituency in Merseyside for publication day, so she handle things with her local party. After all the anxiety, their reaction was 'very positive'.
'They did a vox pop [series of interviews with the general public], the local media, and they couldn't find anyone that criticised me. So when they said that, that's when I burst into tears,' she said.
Astonishingly, Eagle spent the next 13 years – Labour's entire period in power – as the only 'out' lesbian in the House of Commons.
Over that time, she picks out her role in proceedings for the civil partnership bill, her support for gay adoption, and her opposition to the watering-down of anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination laws in Northern Ireland as proud moments in Parliament.
It's now thankfully hard to imagine a gay MP having to seek the advice of Deputy PM Angela Rayner before coming out, for fear of backlash.
In fact, Labour's 59 openly LGBTQ+ MPs make up 'by far the largest party cohort of any parliament, anywhere in the world', according to PinkNews.
Her current role, as minister for border security and asylum, puts her in touch with some of the most vulnerable LGBTQ+ people on the planet, asylum seekers fleeing persecution for their sexuality.
Eagle said: 'I just think it's much better that everybody feels that they can be out now. And so that is part of a change that I'm glad to played a part in.'
She added: 'I think people are well aware, given some backtracking particularly on trans rights in a lot of democracies, that there is a backlash going on about equality issues and LGBT rights, and we've got to make sure that we are there to carry on the fight.'
Metro's interview with Eagle took place before the Supreme Court's ruling on the application of the Equality Act for trans men and women. She declined to comment when contacted afterwards, due to her role as a government minister.
Last year, Metro revealed a gay man from Bangladesh had his UK asylum application refused after a judge told him he was only 'trying to pass' himself as gay.
Asked about that story, Eagle said: 'It's very, very difficult to assert something that often you've had to hide. More Trending
'We just have to hope that caseworkers know the right way to approach these sensitive issues, and there isn't a cliched view and that they can make a sophisticated decision that everybody wants to support.
'I can't involve myself in individual cases, because we can't as ministers, but we've got to make certain that there's an understanding of what the issues are in some places where you really can't be gay acting, because you'd be killed.'
For the last three years of the previous Parliament, Eagle sat as co-chair on the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Global LGBT+ Rights.
Her experience there meant she knows 'very well' the struggles people face around the world, she said, adding: 'So I don't ever take progress for granted. We have to keep winning the arguments.'
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
MORE: I told my date my sexual preferences and was immediately ghosted
MORE: Last 'LGBT free zones' in Poland are finally scrapped – what happens next?
MORE: I'm allowed to date other women – my partner isn't
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
This is why Reform is on the cusp of victory
New polling by Ipsos-Mori has Reform on 34 points, currently heading for a working majority in Parliament at the next election. If this came to pass, it would mark the most extraordinary result in British politics in at least a century. Can we really trust polls like these? Let us consider reasons to be sceptical. The first is that all polls like this – standard, nationally representative surveys of a few thousand voters – only capture national vote share. They do not project the corresponding outcome of seats. While we can make rudimentary assumptions of a party's likely representation in Parliament, they are still assumptions. A 34 per cent vote share would return a huge number of seats, but we cannot know whether the spread of votes would be broad enough to secure the number of seats implied by this poll. A party might receive 34 per cent of the vote share, but their support might be concentrated in small geographical areas. In such circumstances, Britain's 'first-past-the-post' electoral system would limit them to a small number of seats. We know Reform will get little support in the big cities; this will artificially inflate Labour's seats next time and limit Reform's. The second reason to be sceptical of these polls is that, this far out from an election, they cannot be treated seriously as predictions. Polls are merely snapshots of public opinion at an exact moment in time. Things were different three months ago; they will be different in three months from now. Sometimes, with polls like this, there is a third reason to be sceptical: you get 'rogue' polls which put one party in an unusually high or low position. Sometimes polls randomly tap into a sample which is out-of-line with public opinion for some reason. This is why you must consider the average of all polls of a given period, and also consider whether polls reflect trends. In considering this specific point, let us now flip the analysis back over. Let us consider why this poll should be taken seriously: there are several reasons to do so. You cannot credibly write this poll off as 'rogue'. This result of 34 per cent broadly reflects other polls coming out at the moment. While it is a little higher, it is not much higher, and it confirms a clear trend that Reform is on the march. It obviously also reflects recent election results. At the mix of national and local elections in May, Reform secured a new MP, a new Mayor and a raft of new councillors across the country. They received 31 per cent of the vote share in the local elections. Ipsos-Mori's poll merely puts Reform on a slightly higher vote share than they secured several weeks ago in real elections. You must always take polls seriously if they reflect what is coming out in focus groups at the same time. Ed Shackle, Public First's head of qualitative research, confirms this to be the case. All the current momentum is with Reform. He notes that, while you used to get some hesitation from voters about admitting they were considering a Reform vote, this is gone now. People increasingly sense that Reform is surging, and it is exciting to get on the bandwagon. While Reform is surging in less-affluent areas on the coast and in towns and small cities across provincial England, their support is up across the board in the focus groups. They are currently hoovering-up most of the votes of disaffected people across the country. This recent polling result has also come after a wave of stories on issues where Reform is strong: immigration and crime, most notably. For the last few weeks, the media has been awash with stories of grooming gangs, serious crimes alleged to have been committed by asylum-seekers, the continued arrival of small boats, and all the rest. This cannot but help Reform's standing in the polls. While I am personally sceptical of anyone's ability to make a judgement on the national mood based on their own personal, random conversations, when these conversations are entirely in line with the polls, you have to wonder. And the conversations I have with ordinary people in my own personal life confirms that huge numbers of people are seriously thinking about voting for Reform. Overall, then, we should take this poll seriously; Reform is very obviously the most popular party in the country at this moment. But we still have four more years before the next election and an awful lot will change. Above all, given their recent record, it is reasonable to assume Reform will blow themselves up with internal rows and blatant incompetence. If they can make it through to the end of this year in a similar polling position but without a terrible internal trauma, it will be worth taking them very seriously.
Daily Mirror
2 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Brits trapped in Israel will be evacuated 'in hours not days' amid US attacks
The UK has been working on charter flights for Britons trapped in Israel with the airspace expected to reopen on Sunday afternoon so planes can safely enter the country Brits trapped in Israel will be evacuated in "hours, not days" amid rising conflict in the country, the business secretary has this morning announced. With the conflict between Israel and Iran ongoing, the UK has been working on charter flights for Britons in Israel. The country's airspace is currently closed, although it is expected to reopen on Sunday for repatriation flights. Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds told Sky News: 'We are in active conversations about chartering aircraft to get people out. That's not possible at the minute from Israel because airspace is, of course, closed.' Israel's airports authority said airspace would reopen from 11am to 5pm GMT (12pm to 6pm UK time) on Sunday for landings only. The airspace has been shut since June 13 and Mr Reynolds even suggested Brits could attempt to cross the border via land before returning to the UK. Asked if chartered flights would happen imminently, Mr Reynolds said: 'I believe our intention would be to do that as soon as possible… hours, not days. As well as that, if people are able to travel across land, we have rapid response teams on the Jordanian and the Egyptian borders. So people are traveling across land to countries where they could feasibly fly out on commercial aircraft.' The Foreign, Commonwealth Development Office (FCDO says all British Nationals who have already registered via the Register Your Presence portal will automatically be contacted and provided with a link to the booking portal. The FCDO is urging all those interested in flights back to the UK to register their presence now, if not done so already, so that they can receive details. Those with greatest need will be prioritised for flights and all passengers must hold a valid travel document. Non-British immediate family members will require valid visas/permission to enter or remain that was granted for more than six months. The FCDO will contact those who are allocated a seat on the flight directly and British Nationals should not make their way to the airport unless they are contacted. However those eligible for the flights will be expected to pay for their seat – and payment will be taken on registration via the flight booking form. This fee will be refunded to those who are not allocated a seat. This is in line with our approach to previous charter flights from the region. Meanwhile, commercial flights are continuing to operate from Egypt and Jordan, and international land border crossings to these countries remain open. An FCDO spokesperson said: "This is a perilous and volatile moment for the Middle East. The safety of British Nationals in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories continues to be our utmost priority – that's why the UK government is preparing flights to help those wanting to leave. 'Working closely with the Israeli authorities, our staff are continuing to work at pace to assist British Nationals on the ground and ensure they receive the support they need'. It comes after Donald Trump launched US air strikes on three of Iran's nuclear facilities overnight, including the Fordo facility, which is buried deep underground. US President Mr Trump said the key nuclear sites had been 'completely and fully obliterated'. Sir Keir Starmer urged Iran to return to negotiations and called the country's nuclear programme is a 'grave threat' which the US military action would 'alleviate'. There is understood to have been no UK involvement in the action, which comes after Sir Keir and Foreign Secretary David Lammy had pushed for a diplomatic solution rather than US action which could further destabilise the region. The Prime Minister said: 'Iran's nuclear programme is a grave threat to international security. Iran can never be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon and the US has taken action to alleviate that threat. 'The situation in the Middle East remains volatile and stability in the region is a priority. We call on Iran to return to the negotiating table and reach a diplomatic solution to end this crisis.' Mr Reynolds added: 'We had proposed a diplomatic course of action, as other European countries have done. The Iranians had rejected that. And I know people will be waking up this morning and they'll be worried. They'll want to know what this means. 'And I do want to give them reassurance that whilst the British government, the UK, has not been involved in these attacks, we have been making extensive preparations for all eventualities, including how we look after British nationals in the region and how we get them out, and the assets we have in the region to protect British infrastructure, British bases, British personnel, if we need to do that. 'But from where we are now, what I think we need to do, as the President, I believe himself has said, is get back around the table. Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon, but we need a diplomatic process to turn this round.' Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi warned the attacks 'will have everlasting consequences' and that Tehran 'reserves all options' to retaliate. Iran launched a ballistic missile barrage against Israel in retaliation to the US action. The foreign ministry in Tehran issued a statement condemning 'the United States' brutal military aggression against Iran's peaceful nuclear facilities'. It added: 'The Islamic Republic of Iran is resolved to defend Iran's territory, sovereignty, security and people by all force and means against the United States' criminal aggression.'
The Independent
2 hours ago
- The Independent
Giraffe genitalia among hundreds of body parts imported by trophy hunters
Wildlife hunters took home nearly 1,800 giraffe body parts 'trophies' in a year – including from more than 100 animals specially bred in captivity to be shot, it's been revealed. Whole skins, bones, skulls, feet and tails were all popular with wealthy hunters who paid to shoot giraffes – but one even tried to smuggle back home genitalia from an animal they had shot. Customs officers in the United States discovered the genitalia in the luggage of a traveller returning from Africa. Figures from the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites) show that 1,791 giraffe trophies were exported worldwide in 2023, the most recent available data. Some 120 of the animals were recorded in the database as captive-bred, to be killed by foreign hunters. British hunters imported 21 giraffe trophies into the UK that year, but other European nations also accounted for some imports, including Austria, Germany and France. US hunters imported 1,072 (60 per cent) of the global total. Plans for a ban on trophy imports into the UK remain stalled. The Tories under Boris Johnson dropped proposals for a ban, and Labour accused the government of being 'complicit' in trophy hunting when Conservative peers blocked such a plan. Campaigners are calling on the UK government to finally deliver on Labour's long-standing promise to ban the import of hunting trophies – a pledge made in election manifestos. Giraffes are classified as vulnerable by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's (IUCN) Red List, the global system of monitoring species' statuses. It estimates there are about 68,000 giraffes left in the world. The species is outnumbered three-to-one by elephants in Africa – whose own populations are dropping – yet they have less protection, conservationists point out, calling for action to close legal loopholes. 'Giraffes have suffered about a 40 per cent decline in numbers in three generations,' said Prof Fred Bercovitch, adjunct Professor at the University of the Free State, South Africa and a leading giraffe expert. 'If the decline continues at the current rate, they will be extinct before long.' British-owned trophy-hunting companies are offering giraffe-shooting 'holidays' online. One is marketing more than 200 giraffe shoots, with 'special offers' starting at under £1,500. One worldwide site offering wildlife shooting trips in Botswana and Zimbabwe charges a fee of $1,800 (£1,336) to hunt giraffes on its estates. Prof Bercovitch, who has written giraffe conservation reviews for the IUCN, rejected industry claims that trophy-hunting boosts local economies. 'If trophy-hunting benefits the local economy and increases the socioeconomic status of people in hunting areas, then those people would have a higher standard of living than people in areas where hunting is forbidden. However, there is no evidence to suggest this is the case,' he said. He called on the UK to act. 'The trophy-hunting of giraffes produces yet further declines in endangered populations. If the UK truly wants to support conservation, it must shut its borders to these trophies once and for all.' A private member's bill banning trophy-hunting imports is due to have a second reading in the Commons on 11 July, and it's understood the government will set out its position then, but private members' bills rarely become law without government support. A spokesperson for the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said: 'The government was elected on a mandate to ban the import of hunting trophies – that is exactly what we will do.'
