LGBT+ Conservatives is an organisation for

LGBT conservatism LGBTQ conservatism refers to LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer) individuals with conservative political views. Terminology LGBTQ conservatism is an umbrella term which may be divided into two specific sub-categories, e ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. It 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 to LGBT+ Conservatives. The group campaigns for

LGBT rights Rights affecting lesbian, Gay men, gay, Bisexuality, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the Capital punishmen ...

alongside the main political beliefs and policies of the Conservative Party, which it promotes within the Party,

LGBT community The LGBTQ community (also known as the LGBT, LGBT+, LGBTQ+, LGBTQIA, LGBTQIA+, or queer community) comprises LGBTQ people, LGBTQ individuals united by LGBTQ culture, a common culture and LGBTQ movements, social movements. These Community, comm ...

, and wider public. Besides this LGBT+ Conservatives campaigns for LGBT candidates, including through its Candidates' Fund and attends Pride events across the country. It also organises events related to LGBT rights including an annual event with Stonewall at Conservative Party Conference. Since its early formation, the organisation has had an impact nationally, within

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

and globally becoming the model and inspiration for LGBTory and alike groups in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Activity

LGBT+ Conservatives has been present at social meet ups, meals and drinks and

Pride Pride is a human Emotion, secondary emotion characterized by a sense of satisfaction with one's Identity (philosophy), identity, performance, or accomplishments. It is often considered the opposite of shame or of humility and, depending on conte ...

events across the country. 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 The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

and House of Commons.

2010s

In 2016, LGBT+ Conservatives' officers also represented the organisation at the then-Prime Minister

Theresa May Theresa Mary May, Baroness May of Maidenhead (; ; born 1 October 1956), is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2016 to 2019. She previously served as Home Secretar ...

's LGBT

Downing Street Downing Street is a gated street in City of Westminster, Westminster in London that houses the official residences and offices of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and the Chancellor of the Exchequer. In a cul-de-sac situated off Whiteh ...

garden reception. After the 2017 general election, the group's then-chair Matthew Green was critical of the

Democratic Unionist Party The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) is a Unionism in Ireland, unionist, Ulster loyalism, loyalist, British nationalist and national conservative political party in Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1971 during the Troubles by Ian Paisley, who ...

, describing the DUP's record on LGBT issues as "appalling". This followed May's announcement that she intended to form a minority government with the DUP. As a result of the

hung Parliament A hung parliament is a term used in legislatures primarily under the Westminster system (typically employing Majoritarian representation, majoritarian electoral systems) to describe a situation in which no single political party or pre-existing ...

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 transgender people. It later apologised for the tone of the tweet.

2020s

In 2021, the Conservative Prime Minister

Boris Johnson Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (born 19 June 1964) is a British politician and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He wa ...

's wife Carrie Johnson spoke at the group's yearly Pride Reception in a rare public intervention. Described by Chairwoman Elena Bunbury as a "longstanding ally" and "a good sport to LGBT+ Conservatives", Mrs Johnson's speech was widely reported in both UK and international press. This was the first intervention at a party conference by the spouse of a Prime Minister since Gordon Brown's wife Sarah Brown spoke at the

Labour party conference The Labour Party Conference is the annual conference of the British Labour Party (UK), Labour Party. It is formally the supreme decision-making body of the party and is traditionally held in the final week of September, during the party conferen ...

. Mrs Johnson told a 100-strong audience including the Prime Minister Boris, his sister

Rachel Johnson Rachel Sabiha Johnson (born 3 September 1965) is a British journalist, television presenter, and author who has appeared frequently on political discussion panels, including ''The Pledge (British TV programme), The Pledge'' on Sky News and BBC ...

, his father Stanley Johnson and the Foreign Secretary

Liz Truss Mary Elizabeth Truss (born 26 July 1975) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from September to October 2022. On her fiftieth da ...

, that the Prime Minister was committed to LGBT rights. In 2023, the group celebrated ten years since the passing of the Conservative Party's Same-Sex Marriage Act, by hosting a drinks reception with former Conservative Prime Minister

David Cameron David William Donald Cameron, Baron Cameron of Chipping Norton (born 9 October 1966) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016. Until 2015, he led the first coalition government in the UK s ...

who has cited it several times as one of his proudest achievements in office. The event was also attended by Baroness Stowell, who was the

Leader of the House of Lords The leader of the House of Lords is a member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom who is responsible for arranging government business in the House of Lords. The post is also the leader of the governing party in the House of Lords who acts ...

at the time and responsible for seeing the Same-Sex Marriage Act's passage through the

. Famed for opening the debate with a joke about her love for

George Clooney George Timothy Clooney (born May 6, 1961) is an American actor, filmmaker, and philanthropist. Known for his leading man roles on screen in both blockbuster and independent films, Clooney has received numerous accolades, including two Ac ...

, Baroness Stowell is cited by many within the LGBT+ Conservatives as a key force behind getting the bill through the

. In 2023, the group partnered with a UK media company, Tiny White Fox, to develop a new weekly podcast on LGBT+ current affairs called Never Kissed A Tory hosted by Joe Wilmot, Albie Amankona and Luke Robert Black. The podcast also hosts Conservative MPs, AMs and Peers, including Emma Best AM, Andrew Boff AM, Maria Caulfield MP, Susan Hall AM and Alicia Kearns MP. In December 2023, the group hosted its first ever reception at

10 Downing Street 10 Downing Street in London is the official residence and office of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, prime minister of the United Kingdom. Colloquially known as Number 10, the building is located in Downing Street, off Whitehall in th ...

in which the Prime Minister

Rishi Sunak Rishi Sunak (born 12 May 1980) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 2022 to 2024. Following his defeat to Keir Starmer's La ...

attended and met with its members. In the reception, the organisation celebrated the success of its joint campaign with the

Terrence Higgins Trust Terrence Higgins Trust is a British charity that campaigns about and provides services relating to HIV and sexual health. In particular, the charity aims to end the transmission of HIV in the UK; to support and empower people living with HIV, to ...

to expand

HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of '' Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the im ...

Opt-Out testing in English A&Es, which was announced the previous month by the Conservative Health Secretary Victoria Atkins at a parliamentary reception with Sir Elton John.

Fund

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

Chairpersonship

* 2007–2008: Anastasia Beaumont–Bott * 2008–2009: Edward Butler–Ellis * 2009–2013: Matthew Sephton * 2013–2017: Colm Howard–Lloyd * 2017–2018: Matthew Green - Resigned 14 May 2018 * 2018–2019: John Cope *2019–2020: Colm Howard-Lloyd *2020–2023: Elena Bunbury * 2023–present: Luke Robert Black

Patrons

LGBT+ Conservatives patrons in the House of Commons: * Rt. Hon. Stuart Andrew MP * Dehenna Davison MP * Sir Michael Fabricant MP * Paul Holmes MP * Kieran Mullan MP * Crispin Blunt MP * Peter Gibson MP * Nigel Evans MP * Mike Freer MP * Iain Stewart MP * Gary Sambrook MP * William Wragg MP * Rt Hon. David Mundell MP * Elliot Colburn MP * Mark Fletcher MP * Daniel Kawczynski MP LGBT+ Conservatives patrons in the House of Lords: * Lord Black of Brentwood * Baroness Davidson of Lundin Links * Lord Duncan of Springbank * Lord Hayward * Lord Barker of Battle * Lord Herbert of South Downs LGBT+ Conservatives patrons in Holyrood: * Annie Wells MSP * Jamie Green MSP LGBT+ Conservatives patrons in the London Assembly: * Andrew Boff AM * Emma Best AM * Nick Rodgers AM LGBT+ Conservatives patrons who are regional metro mayors: * Andy Street

Awards

The LGBT+ Conservatives started giving out awards to UK parliamentarians and LGBT+ Conservatives' Executive and council members in 2022. Prospective candidates for an award are shortlisted by the LGBT+ Conservatives' Executive. Once shortlisted, the members of the LGBT+ Conservatives vote for their preferred winner. Traditionally, the Awards are announced at the Pride Reception, which the LGBT+ Conservatives has held jointly with the UK LGBT charity Stonewall at Conservative Party Conference.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:LGBT Conservatives LGBTQ conservatism LGBTQ political advocacy groups in the United Kingdom Organisations associated with the Conservative Party (UK) 2006 establishments in the United Kingdom LGBTQ affiliate organizations of political parties 2016 in British politics Conservative Party (UK) donors