Pride Month: What Pride means to Labour’s LGBT+ MPs

Each June marks Pride Month, dedicated to commemorating contributions by the LGBT+ community and acting as a reminder of the ongoing fight for equality.

Almost 50 years after Maureen Colquhoun became the first MP to be openly gay while in office, more than ten percent of the House of Commons identify as LGBT+ – with the majority sitting on the government benches. We spoke to some of Labour’s LGBT+ MPs to ask what Pride means to them.

‘Pride is a reminder that LGBTQ+ people still face challenges today’

Science Secretary Peter Kyle, one of three LGBT+ members of the current Cabinet, grew up in the era of Section 28, which prohibited councils across Great Britain from ‘promoting homosexuality’ – a law that wasn’t repealed in Scotland until 2000 and in England and Wales until 2003.

Kyle told LabourList: “On a personal level, Pride signifies visibility, awareness and acceptance. I can still vividly remember my first Pride march and the euphoria of not hiding who I am or having shame or fear.

“On another level, Pride is very important not just as a celebration of identity and rights, but as a protest against discrimination and a reminder that LGBTQ+ people still face challenges today.”

‘We must not be complacent’

Border security minister Angela Eagle was the first female MP to come out in office and only the second openly lesbian MP, after the late Labour MP for Northampton North Maureen Colquhoun, who was outed by a journalist at the Daily Mail.

She told LabourList: “As a society, we have made great progress on LGBT+ rights. But we must not be complacent. We have already seen an anti-LGBT+ backlash across many countries, with LGBT+ rights being weaponised as a vehicle for division.

“Pride is an opportunity to reflect on the challenges that lay ahead and how we can keep fighting for a world in which every person is free and equal.”

‘We only win by building alliances and by winning the argument’

Steve Race, elected as the MP for Exeter last year, followed in the footsteps of Ben Bradshaw – one of the first MPs who was openly gay when first elected.

He told LabourList that Pride has “always been a central part of the summer for me: a time to get together with friends and others from across our community to celebrate progress, but also a day to remind ourselves of the challenges we still face, both here and around the world.”

“Pride – and indeed our community – is inherently political. It’s about highlighting the ways in which laws affect our everyday lives. I’ve always believed that Pride has a role in providing visibility and is vital in building broad-based support.

“As some in our community face challenges to their ability to live their full lives, we should remember that we only win by building alliances and by winning the argument – Pride should always be a platform for increasing that support, not a space that is gate-kept and which minimises involvement.”

READ MORE: ‘Huge strides have been made for LGBT+ rights over last 50 years, but equality does not feel as certain as it once did’

‘Attending Pride, I got to learn I wasn’t alone’

Assistant government whip Keir Mather was the first openly LGBT+ MP to be elected to the Commons at a by-election back in July 2023. He said attending Pride events over the years “taught me the importance of fighting for the rights of all”.

Mather said: “Attending Pride in Hull when I was growing up – I got to learn that I wasn’t alone. Being there with people from the trade union movement, the Labour Party and LGBT+ activists taught me the importance of fighting for the rights of all, together.

“Attending Pride events across the country in subsequent years taught me that Pride isn’t just a celebration, it’s a powerful articulation of our community’s place in British society. That we’re here, we’re proud of our community – and that Pride will continue as long as we need to realise the rights of people across the United Kingdom.”

‘Pride has always been a protest and a celebration for me’

North Warwickshire and Bedworth MP Rachel Taylor first got involved in politics to campaign against Section 28 in the 1980s.

“Pride has always been a protest and a celebration for me,” she told LabourList.

“I am constantly reminded as an MP that there is so much more that still needs to be done to protect and advance the rights of LGBT+ people.

“This Pride Month – my first as an MP – I was proud to table my amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill that would make hate crimes against LGBT (and disabled people) ‘aggravated offences’ worthy of stiffer sentences.”

Taylor’s amendment was accepted by the government and will table an amendment in the House of Lords for it to be enacted.

READ MORE: ‘We should all take pride in our country’s LGBT+ veterans’

‘We must use this month as motivation to continue fighting for rights’

For Uxbridge and South Ruislip MP Danny Beales, Pride is a “celebration of the right to live your life freely”.

He told LabourList: “Whether it’s the dedicated month of June or the parades up and down the country over the summer, Pride is a collective celebration of individual freedom of life and expression.

“But it must also serve as a reminder of the work that still needs to be done so that this freedom is felt by all. In times of rising hostility towards members of our community – especially the trans community – we must use this month as a motivating force to continue fighting for the rights and respect of LGBTQ+ people.”

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‘Visibility matters – you can’t be what you can’t see’

Inverclyde and Renfrewshire West MP Martin McCluskey followed in the footsteps of David Cairns, former minister of state for Scotland and openly gay MP for Inverclyde.

McCluskey said: “Visibility matters. You can’t be what you can’t see. David Cairns was that visible figure for me. 

“An openly gay MP, my MP, who represented Inverclyde with courage and compassion. I stand on those shoulders, and during Pride, I carry his legacy with purpose. 

“I hope that by being visible, I can help someone else believe they belong too, and that who you love should not be a barrier to holding elected office. That’s what Pride means to me.”

‘Pride was my first glimpse of gay life’

Bournemouth East MP Tom Hayes told LabourList about his first Pride, which he admitted he stumbled upon by accident.

“It was my first glimpse of gay life. As the parade passed by, I understood I wasn’t alone. I began to understand that I belonged to something bigger. Life as a gay man felt more real and achievable.

“Pride matters. It’s a tribute to those who fought for our rights and confirmation that the fight isn’t over. Visibility matters.

“Pride is about parades. And it’s about politics, our best and most important vehicle for improving the lives of LGBT+ people. Every aspect of LGBT+ life gets shaped by political decision.

“As a gay MP, as part of a wider movement, politics is about supporting the right of all to be exactly who they wish to be, to stand in the full light of day, to belong, to love and to live. That’s what I support.”

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