Government rejects creation of LGBTI rights envoy

The UK Government has rejected calls to create a special Foreign Office envoy to promote the rights of LGBTI people throughout the world.

Responding to a parliamentary question from SNP MP Dr Eilidh Whiteford, Foreign Office minister David Lidington (pictured) said that the UK Government did not support the creation of such an envoy – and said creating a new post would be “ticking a box”.

Last month, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced her support for an envoy at the annual Out for Independence conference, and said that a team of SNP MPs elected at the General Election would support the creation of such a post “to promote the rights of LGBTI people throughout the word, as an integral part of UK foreign policy”.

There is also support in the Labour party for the creation of this post, and at the party conference in September 2014, Ed Miliband announced that he would appoint Lord Michael Cashman to the role, under a Labour government.

Last week, the United States appointed their first LGBT human rights envoy, Randy Berry, an openly gay senior diplomat, as part of President Obama’s push to promote LGBT rights internationally, and make them a foreign policy priority.