“My girlfriend and I were walking down the street in South London, holding hands. A man spat at us, and shouted that we were disgusting.” (United Kingdom, Bisexual Woman, 25)
Today the APPG on Global LGBT+ Rights welcomes the release of the results of the second EU LGBTI Survey conducted by the European Fundamental Rights Agency, but it is unacceptable that LGBTI people across the region continue to face inequalities and more dedicated work is urgently needed to improve their lives.
“Too many LGBTI people continue to live in the shadows, afraid of being ridiculed, discriminated or even attacked. Even though some countries have advanced LGBTI equality, our survey findings show that overall there has been too little real progress, leaving many LGBTI people vulnerable. Their job and healthcare difficulties may worsen due to COVID-19. Policymakers should take note and do more to actively promote full respect for rights of LGBTI people,” says FRA Director Michael O’Flaherty.
In 2012, some 93,000 LGBT people responded to the first LGBT survey which FRA carried out to discover the everyday issues affecting LGBT people. This second survey, conducted in 2019, provides comparable data from almost 140,000 LGBTI people across the EU, the United Kingdom, North Macedonia and Serbia. This time the survey also included Intersex people and young people between 15 and 17 years old.
The survey shows that LGBTI people face continued inequalities in all regions, including in the UK.
Key survey findings include:
Openness: 6 in 10 avoid holding hands in public with their partners.
Harassment: 2 in 5 respondents say they were harassed the year before the survey
Attacks: 1 in 5 trans and intersex people were physically or sexually attacked, double that of other LGBTI groups
Discrimination: 1 in 5 feel discriminated against at work and over 1 in 3 feel discriminated against when going out to eat, drink or being social.
Schooling: 1 in 2 LGBTI students say someone among their peers or teachers supported LGBTI people.
Economic situation: 1 in 3 LGBTI people say they have difficulties to make ends meet. The situation is worse for intersex and trans people (about 1 in 2).
Results from the UK also showed:
61% avoid often or always holding hands with their same-sex partner in the UK. For the EU-28, it is 61%.
34% in the UK avoid often or always certain locations for fear of being assaulted. For the EU-28, it is 33%.
56% are now fairly or very open about being LGBTI in the UK. For the EU-28 it is 47%.
21% felt discriminated against at work in the year before the survey in the UK. For the EU-28, it is 21%.
Discrimination affects many areas of life, such as going to a café, restaurant, and hospital or to a shop. Overall, in the UK in 2019 42% felt discriminated against in at least one area of life in the year before the survey. For the EU-28, it was 42%.
1 in 5 trans and intersex people were physically or sexually attacked in the five years
before the survey, double that of other LGBTI groups.
43% in the UK say they were harassed the year before the survey. The EU-28 is 38%.
11% in the UK had been attacked in the 5 years before the survey. The EU-28 is 11%.
22% went to the police in the UK to report physical or sexual attacks. It is 14% across
the EU-28.
15% reported their discrimination experiences to an equality body or another organisation in the UK. For the EU-28, it is 11%.
42% in the UK say that LGBTI prejudice and intolerance has dropped in their country
in the last five years. It is 40% across the EU-28.
36% in the UK say that prejudice and intolerance have risen. This is 36% for the EU-28.
48% in the UK believe their national government effectively combats prejudice and intolerance against LGBTI people. For the EU-28, it is 33%.
Among young people (18-24), less people (41%) hide being LGBT at school. In 2012,
it was 47%.
20% of LGBTI students (15-17 years old) in the UK say were hiding being LGBTI at school. This was 30% in the EU-28.
51% of LGBTI students (15-17 years old) in the UK say that in school someone often or always supported, defended or protected their rights as an LGBTI person. This was 48% in the EU-28.
68% of LGBTI teenager respondents (15-17 years old) in the UK say their peers or teachers have often or always supported LGBTI people. In the EU-28, this was 60%.
46% of LGBTI of teenager respondents (15-17 years old) in the UK say their school education at some point addressed LGBTI issues positively or in a balanced way. In the EU-28, this was 33%.
The full data for the UK can be found collated here.