Britain is slipping behind on LGBT+ rights just as it leaves the EU. It's no coincidence

As the UK stalls compared to its European neighbours, the feeling that we are no longer the leaders of tolerance is difficult to shake for anyone who has held the hand of their same-sex partner in public

With UK politics so intensely focused on Brexit, it might be easy to forget that, as Britain’s international reputation continues to suffer, there are important domestic issues requiring the government’s attention. Yet if you’re someone who depends on government legislation to allow you to lead a healthy or safe life, it might be harder to forget.

This week, LGBT+ organisation ILGA-Europe has announced its 10th Rainbow Europe Map and Index. The annual list is designed to rank 49 European countries on LGBT+ rights and equality. Troublingly, it has revealed that some countries such as Bulgaria, Hungary and Turkey are regressing as existing laws and pro-LGBT+ policies are disappearing.

But there are also reasons for LGBT+ Brits like me to be concerned: this year, the list reveals that the UK is no longer progressing as quickly as many of our European neighbours in terms of rights and protections for gay, bi and trans people.

Britain topped ILGA’s Rainbow Index in 2014, before slipping down to third in 2016 and 2018. Last year, there were warnings of rising transphobia in pockets of the media. In 2019 we see the UK drifting to eighth place, behind countries such as Portugal and Belgium.

So why is the UK suddenly lagging behind? It’s hard to separate Britain’s domestic issues from the problem of Brexit, which is not only distracting the government from pressing issues such as equality, but has contributed to a national discourse that is increasingly oppositional and intolerant. It is no coincidence that homophobic and transphobic abuse, alongside other forms of hate crime, have steadily risen since the 2016 EU referendum campaign.

ILGA’s list only measures laws, rather than other cultural or environmental factors, but the latter influences the former. For example, one of the areas where the UK fell below ILGA’s expectations was our gender recognition laws, which can be linked to social transphobia. After a public consultation into reforming the Gender Recognition Act, which caused a spike in transphobic abuse and calls to mental health hotlines, the government has been slow to implement the consultation’s findings. Self-determination and non-binary recognition, free from requirements such as spousal vetos have yet to be implemented, yet other countries have taken this step without fuss or fanfare. The same can be said for intersex issues, where ILGA recommends that the UK prohibits medical intervention on intersex children.

Then there is the glaring injustice that in Northern Ireland same-sex marriage is still prohibited. Here we can see Brexit’s influence again, with Theresa May choosing not to impose same-sex marriage on the nation because of her dependence on the DUP.

LGBT+ experiences also vary greatly within the UK. While Northern Ireland drags the UK down, Scotland would fare better if it was counted on its own. According to Scott Cuthbertson, development manager of Equality Network, Scotland would score significantly better on the map and index if its laws and guidelines were assessed in isolation.

Why is this? Scottish respondents showed broad support for introducing legal identification for non-binary people during the country's own public consultation. Intersex people are counted in Scotland’s anti-LGBT+ hate crime statistics, unlike England and Wales. By itself, Scotland would be positioned in third in the index, tied with Belgium.

The toxic political environment ushered in by Brexit can be partly blamed for the UK government being slow to act, or deliberately sidelining legislation, because of its dependencies within the House of Commons or fear of more fractures within its ranks. Other political factors also impact LGBT+ people, such as a rise in anti-immigrant policies since the Conservatives entered government. This contributes towards Britain’s appalling LGBT+ asylum performance – another area singled out by ILGA – compared to Sweden and Germany

As we prepare to leave the EU, ILGA’s rainbow list also shows that countries within the EU – including Sweden, Finland and Luxembourg – are thriving, while those outside the EU, such as Turkey, are going backwards. Philippa Drew, a trustee of Kaleidoscope Trust, tells me that the EU is a vitally important institution for advancing equality. “Not being part of the EU is really, really bad news for LGBT+ equality,” she says. “When EU countries gather to decide common EU policies, LGBT+ rights is one of them. When the EU speaks to people, they listen. We will be excluded from those meetings.”

Legal statistics are often a reflection of lived experiences. As the UK stalls compared to its neighbours, the feeling that we are no longer the leaders of tolerance is difficult to shake for anyone who has held the hand of their same-sex partner in public.

While smaller nations such Malta flourish, setting an example for other small EU members, the UK’s advancement in LGBT+ equality continues to slow down. On the brink of the biggest political change our country has seen for a generation, Brexit’s influence is hard to separate from our disappointing lack of progress. LGBT+ people like me only hope that our slow drift from the top isn’t a sign of things to come.