New Stonewall boss addresses LGBTQ+ hate in Labour Party conference appearance

Simon Blake began his tenure as Stonewall’s new boss by meeting MPs and ministers at the Labour Party conference in Liverpool, to discuss how to tackle anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric and hate. 

Blake chaired a panel alongside women and equalities minister Anneliese Dodds and others from the LGBTQ+ sector.

The new chief executive joined Europe’s largest LGBTQ+ charity from Mental Health First Aid England, where he was chief executive for six years, at a critical time for queer rights.

He has previously worked with Stonewall to repeal Section 28 and equalise the age of consent.

“The path to LGBTQ+ equality has always required enormous courage and effective collaboration,” he said. “It has also, at times, been fraught with challenge and that is certainly true in the [past] few years.”

‘We are stronger when we stand together’

Research from the Office for National Statistics shows that, in the past five years, hate crime based on sexual orientation has risen by 112 per cent, and by 186 per cent for trans people, in England and Wales.

In, 2015 the UK’s legal framework for LGBTQ+ rights topped the ILGA-Europe Rainbow Map, ahead of 48 other countries. Less than a decade later, it has dropped to 15th.

With more than 30 years working on equality and social justice, Blake hopes his time at Stonewall will be “one where we come together and ensure the UK once again leads the way in LGBTQ+ equality”.

Also a former chief executive of the National Union of Students, he added: “In 1989, I was growing up gay in rural England, feeling isolated and alone. Despite living in the face of an HIV epidemic that would shape and devastate the lives of so many of my peers, homophobia was rife and there was an absence of accurate information at home, at school or in the community, to help us. 

“In 2024, the truth is there is still much to be done to achieve LGBTQ+ equality and ensure everyone can lead fulfilling lives, without fear of prejudice, discrimination and harm. We are stronger when we stand together in solidarity, and true equality benefits us all.”

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