Green Party: the LGBT Manifesto

This morning, the Green Party has unveiled its manifesto for the General Election, and as we are doing with every party, Attitude has made a bite-sized version featuring the policies which are specific to the LGBT community.

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ) people

“Despite recent modest advances, discrimination against LGBTIQ people remains in areas such as housing, education, employment and health. The Green Party supports campaign to advance LGBTIQ rights and aims to build a society where everyone is valued, respected and empowered, regardless of their sexuality or gender identity.

We will:

• Legislate to remedy inequality in pension inheritance for same-sex marriage partners and same-sex civil partners.
• Consider reducing the 12-month blood donation deferral period for men who have sex with men, based on individual risk assessment where the donor is identified to be not at risk of passing infections into the blood supply.
• Apologise to and pardon all 50,000-100,000 men convicted of consenting adult same-sex relations under anti-gay laws that have now been repealed.
• Provide mandatory HIV, sex and relationship education – age appropriate and LGBTIQ inclusive – in all schools from primary level onwards.
• Require every school to have an anti-bullying programme that explicitly combats homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying.
• Combat homophobic, biphobic and transphobic violence by ensuring uniform legislation against all forms of hate crime.
• End the cuts to the NHS which have undermined HIV services and made it harder for trans people to access gender reassignment services.
• End the detention of LGBTIQ (and other) asylum seekers and the culture of disbelief that often denies them refugee status.
• Challenge criminalisation, discrimination and violence against LGBTIQ people in other countries and work in solidarity with campaigners there.
• Press the Commonwealth to grant accredited status to a Commonwealth LGBTIQ Association and to urge all member states to end the criminalisation of homosexuality and to protect LGBTIQ citizens against discrimination and hate crime.”

Joining up the policies

“Anti-discrimination policies on their own aren’t enough. It’s vital to see the connections between one policy decision and its effects elsewhere in society. Cuts and austerity measure have a disproportionate effect on LGBTIQ people because of higher levels of reliance on public services due to family estrangement, societal and workplace discrimination, and specific healthcare needs.

Likewise, cuts in youth, housing and social services are more likely affect young LGBTIQ people, particularly those who are estranged from their families. LGBTIQ people are more likely to face unemployment and the impact of this can be much greater because they may not be able to rely on wider social networks. Cuts to services for older and disabled people will have a much greater impact on LGBTIQ people, who are less likely to have children and will be more reliant on public services.

So, restoring the public realm contributes to equality and diversity.”

Greens in power carry out our policies

“Stonewall put the Green-led Brighton Council in first place in their 2014 Education Equality Index. Stonewall has described the Council as ‘leading the way’ in celebrating difference and supporting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students.

Brighton Council also introduced the landmark trans scrutiny panel, looking at how to address transphobia in the city. Of the 37 initial recommendations, 25 have started or been implemented, including addressing transphobia in schools, allowing genderless honorifics for Council documentation and easing access to healthcare for trans people.”

Elsewhere in the manifesto, under a heading ‘Alternatives to Austerity’ the Greens say they will “mobilise the talents and energy of everyone”, including those of “different sexual orientations”. They also set out promises to tackle mental health, which they refer to as “the crisis of our time”, identifying the LGBTIQ communities as being among those who need “special attention”.

The policies were unveiled by Natalie Bennett and Caroline Lucas at an event in East London, and you can read the entire manifesto on the Green Party’s website.

Read our interview with Green leader Natalie Bennett, and other LGBT Green candidates as part of our election coverage in our new issue out now on digital and in print.