Campaigners for LGBT+ rights have recently been most occupied with proposals to ban gay conversion therapy and the rights and wrongs of such a move. But could another battle soon be underway on an appropriately military subject?
The Armed Forces had a ban on homosexuality until 2000 when the Blair government lifted it following a ruling in the European Courts of Human Rights. Veterans dismissed or forced to resign for their sexual orientation or gender identity before this date often suffered loss of ranks or pension. Some were given criminal convictions or placed on the Sex Offenders register, affecting them to this day.
Now Mr S has noticed that tucked away on page 15 of the amendments to the Armed Forces bill currently working its way through the Commons is clause NC17, backed by five Labour backbenchers: Dan Carden, Stephen Morgan, Sharon Hodgson, Kevan Jones and Tonia Antoniazzi. The bill is currently in committee stage but if the amendment passed, it would require the government to review how many people were dismissed or forced to resign from the Armed Forces on grounds of their sexuality since 1955 and consider appropriate forms of compensation.
Mr S understands that discussions in various Labour circles about this subject have been underway for some time. Members of the shadow defence team met with Fighting With Pride campaigners earlier this month to discuss their push for a pardon. A source familiar with the discussions described Labour’s representatives as being ‘fired up’ by what they heard.
So will the amendment be successful? The response from Whitehall officials has been unresponsive thus far but opinion in Westminster is thought to be more receptive. The 2019 intake is – as Pink News once called it – ‘the gayest in the world’ and boasts a number of proudly gay Tory MPs thought likely to back such a move. One source involved with Fighting With Pride said today they were ‘cautiously optimistic of cross party support for a long overdue apology and reparations’ for veterans who served their country but were ‘treated appallingly.’
Given Boris Johnson has only been too keen to express his support for gay rights in the past, Mr S wonders if the self-proclaimed ‘most liberal Conservative PM in decades’ will able to resist such calls.
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