Four major U.K. pride marches suspend political parties amid transgender rights debate

Political parties are often represented at Pride marches in the U.K. For example, the current prime minister, Keir Starmer, attended London Pride in 2022 when he was leader of the Labour Party. Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, a member of the Conservative Party, also attended Pride marches in a political capacity in 2010 and 2011.

The joint decision to prohibit political party participation at these major Pride events follows a ruling last month by the U.K. Supreme Court to exclude transgender women from the legal definition of “woman” in the Equality Act, a 2010 law that legally prohibits discrimination based on certain protected characteristics.

The ruling stemmed from a legal dispute that began in 2018 when the Scottish Parliament passed a law seeking to increase the number of women on public sector boards. The law, to the dismay of some women’s rights activists, included transgender women in its definition of women.

Last month’s court ruling, according to the four Pride groups, “underscores the urgent need for immediate action.”

“In this moment, we choose to stand firmer, louder, and prouder in demanding change that protects and uplifts trans lives,” the statement said.

In a statement shared on X, the LGBT+ Lib Dems, an arm of the Liberal Democrats party, said they are “sickened to our core” by the blanket suspension on political parties. The group said the Liberal Democrats “have been at the forefront of campaigning for LGBT+ rights” and have earned the right to be present at Pride marches.

“We look forward to a constructive dialogue with Pride organisers so we can come back bigger and better, while those parties who pander to bigotry and hatred can be left in the past, where they belong,” the statement continued.

The Pride organizers added that the rollback of trans rights in the U.K. is part of a “disturbing global trend,” citing the banning of Pride events in Hung and the proliferation of anti-trans legislation in the United States. 

So far this year, 575 anti-LGBTQ state bills have been proposed across the U.S., many of them targeting transgender rights, according to a tally by the American Civil Liberties Union. And on the federal level, the Trump administration has made trans issues a priority. In his first weeks in office, President Donald Trump signed a series of executive orders targeting trans rights, including one stating the U.S. government would recognize only two unchangeable sexes and another barring trans people from milit service.