"Fairness for the LGBT communities is worth fighting for"
Green Party Leader and Brighton Pavilion candidate Caroline Lucas addressed a community LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans) hustings in Brighton this evening.
The hustings were organised by LGBT community organisation Spectrum and supported by media outlets Gscene and RealBrighton.
Caroline said: "Our general election manifesto includes the strongest commitments of any party to extend the rights and freedoms of LGBT people.
"We say quite plainly: much remains to be done to rid society of the scourge of homophobia and other hatred of people's sexuality and that struggle must continue.
"But the Greens also remain deeply concerned about the impact of savage cuts in public spending proposed by the other parties will have on the local LGBT population.
"These cuts could affect provision for the elderly LGBT population and even funding for the city's HIV projects.
"Initiatives such as ‘Count me in Too' have shown the LGBT population's access to services is restricted.
"Our pledges to cut wasteful projects such as ID cards and Trident can make available the finance needed for services needed by LGBT people."
The Green Party Manifesto proposes 14 LGBT rights policies.
Our six key LGBT policies are:
(1) Open up civil marriages and civil partnerships to both same-sex and opposite sex couples.
(2) Require all police forces to have LGBT Liaison Officers with time allocated within their work schedules to tackle homophobic and transphobic hate crime.
(3) End the blanket, lifetime ban on gay and bisexual blood donors.
(4) Expand the Equality Act to provide explicit protection against harassment of LGBT people.
(5) Refuse visas and work permits to ‘murder music' singers and others who incite homophobic and transphobic violence.
(6) Ensure safe haven and refugee status for LGBT people fleeing persecution in violently homophobic and transphobic countries.
http://www.lgbtgreens.org.uk/
More information on policies www.greenparty.org
For more information please contact the Brighton and Hove Green Party press office on 01273 766 670.
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