Opinion
-
17 January 2008Feature: Searching for the true meaning of gay love 2 A new play about modern gay love and relationships opens in London next week. -
14 January 2008Comment: Canada’s ban on gay organ donation 1 As Prime Minister Gordon Brown announces plans to rapidly expand the organ donation scheme in the UK by effectively making everyone a donor unless they choose to opt out, Canadian health authorities are under fire for appearing to exclude sexually active gay men.Dr Gary A Levy, one of Canada's leading transplant experts speaks out against the policy which seeks to exclude donors on the grounds of their sexual orientation. -
7 January 2008Analysis: Hillary and Barack excite gay voters 2 That was then, this is now.Less than 24 hours after the stunning victories of Democratic Senator Barack Obama and Republican Mike Huckabee, the former governor of Arkansas, in the Iowa caucuses, the Presidential campaigns and the accompanying national media shifted attention from cold Iowa to the colder tiny Granite state of New Hampshire.And where there are politicians, especially New York Senator Hillary Clinton and former North Carolina Senator John Edwards, the other leaders in the Democratic Party contest, there are LGBT folks trying to influence them and their voters. -
3 January 2008Interview: David Heath on incitement to homophobic hatred 5 As Lib Dem spokesperson on Justice, David Heath is a comforting contrast to the Cleggs and Huhnes of the party.Big, bearded, thoughtful yet jocular, the 53-year-old is a substantial politician in more ways than one, and in his present role he shadows one of the remaining big beasts of the Labour party, Jack Straw.Heath is very much of his constituency, Somerton and Frome. -
3 January 2008COMMENT: Iowa caucuses too close to call 1 Here's the only thing we know for certain about today's Iowa caucuses: no one can predict the winner.Here's the other thing that no one wants to talk about: Will Iowa really matter?For all the attention and millions of campaign dollars spent in the first Presidential contest in the nation, the Iowa caucuses are really a straw poll; a beauty contest with an actual delegate section coming down the road. -
27 December 2007The 50 most powerful LGBT people in British politics 59 As we look forward to another year, we cannot help but ponder the fact that if Gordon Brown had called an autumn election we could have been hearing a very different Queen's Speech last month.But if the Conservatives or even the Liberal Democrats had won the election, there would be gay people at the heart of government.The purpose of this PinkNews.co.uk Top 50 list is to demonstrate the presence of gay and lesbian people at the highest levels of British politics. -
27 December 2007Profile: The most powerful gay man in British politics 55 Spencer Livermore is one of the least-recognised names on the PinkNews.co.uk Top 50, but he wields a level of influence most politicians could only dream of.As Director of Political Strategy at Number 10, he is planning the next election and the direction of the government and the Labour party next week, next month and next year. -
21 December 2007Interview: Exorcising the spirit of Section 28 + "I'd put entertainer," Rikki Beadle-Blair says with a grin, when I ask him what he puts down as his occupation when he fills in official forms.The reason for my question is that Rikki seems to be good at everything. -
20 December 2007Comment: The maverick Presidential hopefuls 2 For one bright, shining moment last summer, LGBT political activists had a direct impact on the 2008 presidential race in a positive way.Former Alaskan Senator Mike Gravel was not deemed to be a viable Democratic Presidential candidate and therefore was not invited to participate in the historic Visible Vote '08 Presidential Forum in Los Angeles hosted by the Human Rights Campaign and broadcast on Logo.That made many LGBT activists and bloggers angry. -
15 December 2007Interview: Peter Tatchell’s 40 years of campaigning 4 Peter Tatchell celebrated his fortieth year of campaigning on 10th December, Human Rights Day.The Australian-born activist began campaigning for human rights, democracy and global justice in 1967, aged 15.Now, at 55, his eyes still have the vividness and energy of a teenager, and he has no intention to retire, because, he says, there is still much work to do. -
14 December 2007Comment: Gay Hollywood. Two steps forward, two steps back + It was the headline that spread like a California wildfire. -
11 December 2007Interview: A rising star in the Tory firmament 11 The 2005 intake of MPs contained the usual mix of the good, the bad and the barmy. -
5 December 2007Analysis: New law will protect parents and sperm donors 1 The story of a 37-year-old man who donated sperm to a lesbian couple and is now being asked to pay child support highlights the complicated legal situation around children conceived by artificial methods.New legislation before Parliament aims to make it easier for lesbian couples to access NHS fertilisation services and ensure that a lesbian or gay couple can become the legal parents of their children.At present the law requires that NHS fertility clinics take account of the "need for a father" when assessing women for treatment. -
5 December 2007Comment: A bad election year for Howard and the Belgians + As 2007 has only weeks left, it seems an appropriate time to reflect on what has been a truly outstanding year for those of us who follow general elections around the world.And as we gear up for an equally busy 2008 with high-profile elections in Iran, Pakistan (increasingly unlikely), Russia (unless Putin changes the constitution) and New Zealand, there is the added bonus that the biggest prize of all is now less than a year away: the race for the White House. -
4 December 2007Interview: Irish gay rights group takes on partnerships + Ireland has come a long way since decriminalising homosexuality in 1993.Last week the Republic of Ireland's Minister of State for Equality, Sean Power, reiterated that legislation allowing same-sex civil partnerships will be introduced next year.While ruling out gay marriage as unconstitutional, he did confirm that gay and straight co-habiting couples would get many spousal rights through the Civil Partnership Registration Scheme. -
29 November 2007Comment: Gay voters could hold the keys to the White House 2 If you haven't checked your calendar lately, there are exactly 418 days left in the Bush Presidency, and one of the most interesting and perhaps ground breaking elections is right around the corner.While many American voters are split on perennial election issues such as the war in Iraq, abortion, education and immigration, next year's election could offer up a whole new issue that ultimately decides who the next president of the United States will be.With so many gay issues circulating Washington lately, it could just be that the gay vote is what sways the way the administration will be run.
-
26 November 2007Interview: Maria Eagle defends homophobic incitement law + The government's proposal to create a new offence of incitement to hatred on the grounds of sexual orientation has not been met with approval by some leading gay commentators.Well-respected opinion-formers such as Times columnist Matthew Parris and Independent journalist Johann Hari have questioned the need for new laws.Parris said that the gay community does not need protection from ridicule. -
15 November 2007Interview: Clegg sets out his leadership credentials + Since winning Sheffield Hallam in the 2005 general election, Nick Clegg has made a major impression on Liberal Democrats in Parliament and across the country.Tipped as a future leader before he even entered Westminster, in the wake of Sir Menzies Campbell's resignation he finds himself standing sooner than was imagined.Age did it for Ming, and 40-year-old Clegg is the frontrunner in the contest to replace him. -
15 November 2007Comment: Evangelical has no place on equality commission 41 Simon Barrow of Ekklesia has a silver tongue when it comes to making excuses for the disgraceful behaviour of some of his co-religionists.Now he comes out in defence of the Evangelical Alliance and its leader Joel Edwards, who has been appointed as a commissioner to the Equality and Human Rights Commission.Give him time, says Simon, let's see how he behaves. -
14 November 2007Comment: Keep the EHRC door open to promote change 39 Reactions to the news that the Rev Joel Edwards, general director of the Evangelical Alliance, had been appointed to serve as one of the commissioners on the new Equalities and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), were swift and predictable.There was acknowledgement but little immediate comment in the religious press (many there are nervous about the news, for the opposite reason to PinkNews.co.uk readers) and annoyance and incomprehension in LGBT communities and among civil rights and secular activists.
