Where does Tory leadership hopeful James Cleverly stand on LGBTQ+ issues?
Former Conservative leadership contender and Shadow Home Secretary James Cleverly. (Ian Forsyth/Getty)
James Cleverly is the new frontrunner in the Conservative Party leadership race, but where does the MP for Braintree, in Essex, stand on LGBTQ+ issues?
After the latest round of voting by fellow Conservative MPs, the former home secretary is ahead of Robert Jenrick and Kemi Badenoch to replace Rishi Sunak. Tom Tugendhat was knocked out of the contest, which some wags have likened to an overly long reality TV show.
In a position that seems to differ from many of his colleagues, Cleverly has generally shown himself to be an ally of LGBTQ+ people.
When he was selected as part of Liz Truss’s cabinet, his views differed starkly from the likes of Badenoch. However, he was a senior member of a government that was deeply anti-LGBTQ+. So, what can we expect if he becomes leader of the opposition? Here is his record on some major issues.
He was an early support of same-sex marriage two decades ago
Cleverly has supported same-sex marriage since as far back as 2005, when, in a blog post, he voiced his support for it and civil partnerships.
“I like marriage and I think that in most cases it is a force for good. I also strongly believe in the family, I don’t feel that the two are incompatible,” he said. “Gay marriage takes nothing away from heterosexual marriage and while there will be some civil partnerships which are done for the wrong reasons, the same can be said of straight marriage.
“Best of luck, I say.”
In 2013, Cleverly re-posted his article on gay marriage alongside the statement: “I reread it and can’t say I disagree with a word. It’s nice to know I still agree with myself.”
However, in 2019, he was absent from a House of Commons vote on extending same-sex marriage to Northern Ireland.
He’s previously signalled he’s trans-inclusive – but did serve in an anti-trans government
In 2018, Cleverly appeared on a Question Time panel discussing the proposed reforms to gender recognition laws and aired his thoughts on trans rights in the UK.
In response to a trans woman in the audience, Cleverly, who was deputy chairman of his party at the time, said: “I am a Conservative because I believe in personal choice, personal freedom, personal responsibility, and I think this is the natural evolution of those principles.
“If a sexual predator wishes to enter a toilet to attack a woman, there’s no need to have any recognition or certificate to do so, that can happen already. If that’s what we’re worried about, we should look at ways of protecting women, rather than dance around the issue and try to make an already difficult issue even more difficult.
He was criticised for comments he made about the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar
Ahead of the men’s football World Cup in Qatar in 2022, Cleverly was criticised for telling LGBTQ+ fans to be “respectful” of the host nation’s laws and advising them to “compromise”.
Homosexuality is illegal in Qatar and those convicted of same-sex activity can be imprisoned for up to seven years. In the weeks leading up to the tournament, reports of abuse against LGBTQ+ people mounted.
When asked by LBC host Nick Ferrari about LGBTQ+ activist Peter Tatchell, who was allegedly arrested in Qatar while protesting against the country’s stance on queer rights, Cleverly said: “I haven’t spoken with the government of Qatar, but my understanding is that he was questioned.
“I have spoken to the Qatari authorities in the past about gay football fans going to watch the World Cup and how they will treat our fans and international fans. They want to make sure that fans are safe, secure and enjoy themselves, and they know that means they are going to have to make some compromises in terms of what is an Islamic country with a very different set of cultural norms to our own.
“One of the things I would say for football fans is: please do be respectful of the host nation… With a little bit of flex and compromise at both ends, it can be a safe, secure and exciting World Cup.”
He went on to say that he “would certainly consider” going to Qatar if he was LGBTQ+, a comment that was deemed dangerous advice and faced opposition from Match of the Day host Gary Lineker and Tory minister Nadhim Zahawi.
He’s vowed to bring back the anti-LGBTQ+ Rwanda scheme
Cleverly has vowed to bring back the controversial Rwanda scheme if he becomes the next Conservative leader.
Last month, he backed the Rwanda Migration and Economic Development Partnership, a policy created by the Conservative government under which asylum seekers “illegally” entering the UK would have been sent to the East African country.
The scheme – said to have already cost taxpayers more than £700 million ($916 million) – has been branded dangerous because it means LGBTQ+ asylum seekers would be sent to a country where they are not protected from discrimination.
The UK government’s travel advice says that homosexuality, while legal in Rwanda, remains “frowned on by many”, adding: “LGBT individuals can experience discrimination and abuse, including from local authorities. There are no specific anti-discrimination laws that protect LGBT individuals.”
Figures from the community-driven equality index Equaldex revealed that 98.4 per cent of Rwandans do not view homosexuality as justifiable and more than 88 per cent would not want gay neighbours.
Within days of winning the general election, Labour axed the proposals.
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