The Government has today published the Sexual Orientation Regulations for Great Britain.

[...]

The regulations come into force on the 30th April.

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Gay campaign group Stonewall said that they welcomed the publication of the sexual orientation regulations.

"We'll be working closely with MP's and members of the House of Lords in coming weeks, ahead of votes in parliament to approve the new laws," said Alan Wardle, Stonewall's Director of Parliamentary and Public Affairs. "It's essential that these regulations come into force in April to provide much-needed and long overdue protection from discrimination for gay people."

A copy of the regulations can be found on the OPSI website.

(I couldn't find an earlier thread on this...)

The new Sexual Orientation Regulations contain an opt-out for insurance companies and blood donor clinics that allows them to continue to discriminate on the grounds of sexual orientation.

The SORs, published yesterday, protect gay, lesbian and bisexual people in England, Scotland and Wales from discrimination when accessing goods and services.

Regulation 27 provides an exception to the SORs where a person is treated less favourably on grounds of his sexual orientation in relation to an annuity, or life insurance policy, or similar matter.

The small print of the regulations, published yesterday, make clear that insurance companies will have to argue to retain this exemption after 2008.

There is a similar provision in gender and disability equality legislation that allows insurers to use actuarial data to decide on which premiums to charge.

The Equality Act, protecting LGB people from discrimination in regards to goods and services, will come into effect on April 30, 2007.

Transgender discrimination has not been addressed.

[nauseating, self-serving claptrap from Ruth Kelly and Tony Blair edited out]

Commenting on the Government's response to the published regulations, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Women and Equality, Lorely Burt MP said: [...] However, we are disappointed the Government opted not to protect transgender people in these regulations as well."

George Broadhead, secretary of Gay and Lesbian Humanist Association, said: "We are extremely pleased that the regulations haven't been unduly compromised by concessions to religious groups. It also gives us hope that if the Government proceeds with its intention to hand many welfare services over to religious groups, that they will not be able to discriminate in the provision of these services on the grounds of sexual orientation. The Government has obviously come to the conclusion that when there is a clash of rights, gay rights must be put before the Œrights' of the religious."

A university which had been at the centre of a row over a decision not to allow same sex "weddings" on its premises has reversed its policy.

Canterbury Christ Church University had faced a storm of protest, but a meeting this week decided it should continue to accept bookings for civil ceremonies.

The vice chancellor, Professor Michael Wright, said the decision was "in view of the forthcoming change in the law".

The Government has been urged to exempt bed and breakfasts from new laws which ban hospitality operators from refusing customers on grounds of their sexual orientation.

The Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) Regulations, which will come into force in England, Wales and Scotland next month, were approved last week after a last-ditch bid to block the legislation failed in the House of Lords.

...

But David Weston, chairman of the Bed & Breakfast Association, said that while he welcomed the act on a broader level, he felt that B&Bs should be exempt.

"A lot of small B&Bs are operated from people's homes and for the same reasons that people renting out rooms to lodgers are excluded from the law, so should B&Bs," he said. "We don't want the right to keep people out or to discriminate against them, but a number of very small B&Bs operated by people with strict religious beliefs may be forced to close their business as a direct result of this law."

"We don't want the right to keep people out or to discriminate against them,

The Sexual Orientation Regulations come into force in Britain today.

It is now illegal to discriminate when providing goods ,services and facilities on the grounds of sexual orientation. Heterosexual people are also covered by the new law, meaning that it is now illegal to refuse them entry into gay bars. The rules came into force in Northern Ireland on January 1st.

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Last month a group of Tory MPs attempted to block the SORs at committee stage, arguing that they had not been given proper time to debate them. They then forced a House of Commons vote. However, the regulations passed by 310 votes to 100.

29 Tory MPs voted in favour of the regulations, among them party leader David Cameron, gay MPs Nick Herbert and Alan Duncan, Shadow Cabinet members George Osborne, David Willetts, Francis Maude and Theresa Villiers, and Shadow Equality spokesman Eleanor Laing.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer [Gordon Brown] voted in favour of the regulations, as did Ruth Kelly. It was the first time either of them had voted in favour of gay rights.

The man expected to become Britain's next Prime Minister was verbally assaulted in Soho last week. A gang of hoodies taunted Gordon Brown with anti-gay jibes as he left a restaurant in Greek St.

thelondonpaper reports that on Thursday evening the Chancellor was outside the Gay Hussar, a favourite with Westminster politicians, when the gang started to shout abuse. "They were all screaming abuse at him, calling him gay and a poof," an onlooker told the paper.

"They were getting aggressive. A girl said she¹d had her benefits cut and was going to rob him." Mr Brown was escorted to his car by security and driven off.

[...]

Last month Gordon Brown voted in favour of the Sexual Orientation Regulations, which become law today. It was the first time he had attended a vote on gay rights legislation since Labour came to power in 1997.

A survey of attitudes of MPs has found that many Conservative members have a markedly different social outlook from leader David Cameron.

many Conservative members have a markedly different social outlook from leader David Cameron

New legislation banning discrimination against gays, lesbians and bisexuals is lawful with just one exception, a High Court judge has ruled.
Mr Justice Weatherup said harassment provisions in the Sexual Orientation Regulations must be removed.

The judgement means providers of goods, services and education can be fined up to £15,000 for breaching regulations. But they cannot be prosecuted for stating their opposition to giving a room to a gay or lesbian couple.

The judgement followed a five-day hearing last June when the Christian Institute and numerous churches applied for a judicial review of the regulations which they claimed were a "gay rights charter."

It was also argued that the regulations were a "blatant infringement" of religious liberty which could be used to override matters of Christain conscience or to harass Christians in their belief.

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Colin Hart, director of the Christian Institute, said he was delighted that the harassment portion of the legislation had been struck down. "It means that freedom of speech is preserved," said Mr Hart.

The other applicants in the case were the Reformed Presbyterian Church, the Congregational Union, the Evangelical Presbyterian Church, the Association of Baptist Churches, the Fellowship of Independent Methodist Churches and Christian Camping International.

Gay equality organisation Stonewall said today that the ruling of the High Court in Belfast on the Sexual Orientation Regulations would not diminish the protections for LGB people in the UK.

Chief executive Ben Summerskill told PinkNews.co.uk: “We are delighted that the court has upheld the regulations as they currently exist across the rest of Britain.”

Mr Justice Weatherup said that a provision which protects LGB people from harassment when accessing goods and services should be set aside. The harassment provision is only in the Northern Ireland regulations and not those governing the rest of the UK.

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“It is a small Pyrrhic victory for the Christian fundamentalist organisations that a very small part of the regulations, that we are not convinced are actually needed, have been struck out on the basis they are not in place in the rest of the UK,” said Mr Summerskill.

The harassment provision was added to the NI regulations to match protection from discrimination provision across all groups in the province. Stonewall told PinkNews.co.uk that they took legal advice on harassment over the regulations in the rest of the UK and decided they were not necessary.

The organisation said that it had not come across a single case where harassment had occurred that would not be covered by existing laws.

The organisation said that it had not come across a single case where harassment had occurred that would not be covered by existing laws.

The harassment provision was added to the NI regulations to match protection from discrimination provision across all groups in the province. Stonewall told PinkNews.co.uk that they took legal advice on harassment over the regulations in the rest of the UK and decided they were not necessary.