North Wales Assembly Member Mark Isherwood has called for action to put an end to the bullying and health inequalities still facing Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) people in Wales.
Responding to yesterday’s Statement by the Leader of the House on ‘International Day against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia’, Mr Isherwood expressed disappointment that despite concerns regarding the treatment of the LGBT community in Wales having been raised in the Assembly throughout his fifteen years as a Member, they are still facing the same problems.
He said:
“Stonewall's 'LGBT in Britain Trans Report' in January 2018 found that two in five trans people and three in 10 non-binary people had experienced a hate crime or incident because of their gender identity in the last 12 months, that one in eight trans employees had been physically attacked by colleagues or customers, and that more than a third of trans university students in higher education had experienced negative comments or behaviour from staff in the previous year.
“When I was speaking here in February 2017 on LGBT History Month, I noted that Stonewall Cymru had stated that 55 per cent of LGB pupils had experienced bullying on the basis of sexual orientation, 83 per cent of trans young people had experienced verbal abuse and 35 per cent had experienced physical assault.
“In your Statement, you state that tackling all forms of bullying within education remains a key priority for the Welsh Government, that you're updating anti-bullying guidance, 'Respecting others', which will be published for consultation later this year, and you're working closely with education practitioners, other partners, children and young people.
“As I recall, we were having the same debates 15 years ago, with the same shared goals across this Chamber, the same awareness because we were all receiving the same messages, because Stonewall Cymru was holding events, including theatrical productions involving people playing pupils in school to highlight the bullying issues, and yet we are where we are. How do you propose to do things differently so that this doesn't fall into the normal consultation trap and actually is co-produced with the community, so that this is designed and delivered and monitored together, so that it's a continuous process?
He added:
“What assurance can you provide that the problems that I know some of those groups are still encountering, because of poor understanding or awareness, or simply protecting people's own turf at senior level in public sector organisations, can be challenged, so the message gets through that getting this right not only improves lives, but saves money too, which is often the argument given for not doing it in certain places?
“Again, I referred to last year's LGBT History Month speech and debate in the Chamber. At that stage, I said, 'LGBT people in Wales continue to face significant health inequalities, with only one in 20 health and social care professionals having received training on LGBT people’s health needs, according to Stonewall.'
“Again, that was 15 or 16 months ago now. Are you able to comment or assure us that the Welsh Government will update us on the progress that might have been achieved, given the concerns raised by Stonewall at that time?
Mr Isherwood also referred to The Terrence Higgins Trust report, 'Uncharted Territory', which shone a light on the needs and experiences of older people living with HIV, including the needs of gay and bisexual men living with HIV, and showed that 58% of people living with the condition over 50 were defined as living on or below the poverty line, and asked what consideration the Welsh Government has therefore given to the needs of older people falling within these demographics.
He also called for an update on the Welsh Government plans for the creation of a Welsh Gender Team to treat patients from March 2018.