Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to tackle increases of reported violent hate crimes towards LGBTQ+ people.
All forms of hate crime are completely unacceptable.
We have a robust legislative framework to respond to hate crimes which target race, religion, sexual orientation, disability and transgender identity.
The Government published the hate crime action plan (Action Against Hate: The UK government’s plan for tackling hate crime) in 2016 and refreshed this plan in October 2018 and has committed to publish a new strategy to tackle hate crime this autumn.
The Government has commissioned a Law Commission review of the adequacy of current hate crime legislation. The review will report this year and we will respond to it when it is complete.
Government action to tackle broader discrimination against LGBTIQ+ people includes:
The Government will continue to work with the police, stakeholders including Galop and others to understand the concerns of LGBTQ+ communities and what more can be done to address those concerns.