United Kingdom
U.K. to host global LGBTQ rights conference
Event to coincide with London Pride’s 50th anniversary
The U.K. this summer will host a global LGBTQ rights conference that will coincide with London Pride’s 50th anniversary.
The Safe to Be Me Conference will take place in London from June 29-July 1.
The conference will focus on four areas: Fighting violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, expanding legal protections for LGBTQ people, ensuring equal access to HIV/AIDS treatment and other public services and working with businesses to promote LGBTQ-inclusive practices.
Nick Herbert, a member of the British House of Lords who advises British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on LGBTQ issues, on March 24 told the Washington Blade during a telephone interview the criminalization of consensual same-sex sexual relations is one of the issues the conference will highlight. Herbert also said he expects Johnson will be among those who will speak at the event.
“There is a huge enthusiasm for this event, a feeling that it is very timely, that it’s important for like-minded countries to get together … but also to try and bring other countries to the event that are on the journey towards LGBT+ rights and we encourage them to move in the right direction,” said Herbert. “I’m excited about the potential for this event, which I think could do real good.”
The Equal Rights Coalition, a group the U.K. currently co-chairs with Argentina, seeks to promote LGBTQ rights around the world.
Herbert said an Equal Rights Coalition meeting will take place in London on June 28, the day before the conference begins. The London Pride parade will happen on July 2.
Ruling against marriage equality in Bermuda, Cayman Islands ‘difficult’
Herbert spoke with the Blade ahead of the expected introduction of a bill in the British Parliament that would ban so-called conversion therapy in England and Wales. The interview took place less than two weeks after the Privy Council’s Judicial Committee blocked marriage for same-sex couples in Bermuda and the Cayman Islands.
“I was personally sorry to see that decision, but I respect the fact that it is a decision by a court and we have to respect the legal process,” said Herbert, referring to the March 14 ruling. “Some people have been urging the U.K. government to step in … these are sovereign countries with their own elected parliaments and stepping in to override them would not be a small thing. And you could see it as a form of neocolonialism.”
“It is difficult,” he added. “What they need to do is to work with those countries to try and persuade them to change their own laws.”
‘Situation in Ukraine is deeply worrying’
The conference will begin less than five months after Russia invaded Ukraine.
“The situation in Ukraine is deeply worrying,” said Herbert. “It is appalling to see the impact on people in Ukraine.”
“We need to do everything that we can to help them, and that will include LGBT+ people,” he added. “Where there are special circumstances affecting LGBT+ people, we need to address those and I have been in discussions with other governments and officials about that.”
Herbert told the Blade that “what is happening in Ukraine does mean that we have to reassert our values; which are about the importance of human rights, of democracy, of self-determination.”
“The values that we bring to our conference in June are the same values,” he said. “I do see what we are doing in June is being consistent with the stance we are taking in Ukraine.”
The British government last fall helped evacuate two groups of LGBTQ Afghans from Afghanistan after the Taliban regained control of the country. Herbert told the Blade that “this work continues” with the U.N. and NGOs that include Stonewall in the U.K. and Rainbow Railroad in Canada.
“We continue to work to provide a safe place for LGBT+ refugees from Afghanistan,” he said. “We have a specific program to welcome people who are fleeing the regime in Afghanistan and we’ve identified LGBT+ people as potentially vulnerable who will need our help.”
United Kingdom
Grindr settles UK lawsuit over claims it shared users’ personal information
Plaintiffs allege gay hookup company disclosed HIV status to third parties
Grindr has agreed to pay £26 million ($35.24 million) to settle a lawsuit in the UK over allegations it shared users’ HIV status and other personal information with third parties.
The BBC on Monday reported a lawsuit was filed in the High Court of England and Wales in 2024. A class action lawsuit with more than 11,000 plaintiffs was later filed in the U.S.
Grindr in a U.S. Security and Exchange Commission filing notes the California-headquartered company as part of the settlement it reached on Sept. 2 will pay £13.0 million ($17.62 million) “to the counterparties” by Dec. 31, 2026, and another £13.0 million ($17.62 million) by March 31, 2027.
“As previously disclosed, in April 2025, Grindr Inc. and Grindr LLC, its indirect and wholly-owned operating subsidiary (collectively, ‘Grindr’), were served with proceedings in the High Court of England and Wales, which proceedings were originally issued in April 2024, brought on behalf of UK Grindr users from a period up to early 2020 alleging violations of UK privacy laws,” reads the U.S. Security and Exchange Commission filing.
“On Sept. 2, 2026, Grindr resolved the above-described UK group action related to historical data practices before 2020, when Grindr was owned and controlled by the Chinese conglomerate Kunlun,” it continues. “The settlement includes no findings or admission of liability. While Grindr disputes the allegations, it recognizes and acknowledges the distress and loss of trust expressed by some of its UK users regarding that pre-2020 period.”
The filing further notes Grindr in 2020 “was sold to new owners and appointed new management” and in 2022 became a publicly listed company on the New York Stock Exchange.
“Since 2020 Grindr has overhauled its privacy program with a keen focus on the unique needs of its community,” reads the filing. “Grindr is and remains a safe space for users, committed to transparency, user control, and responsible data practices.”
A Grindr spokesperson in the UK on Tuesday referred the Washington Blade to the filing for comment on the settlement.
United Kingdom
Queen Camilla meets with JK Rowling
Edinburgh meeting took place on last day of Pride month
Queen Camilla on Tuesday met with JK Rowling.
The Royal Family on X said the meeting took place at Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh. The post included a picture of Camilla and Rowling together.
“With a shared passion for books and a deep commitment to children reading for pleasure, The queen and author JK Rowling have met at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh,” it reads. “Her Majesty and Ms. Rowling discussed the importance of ensuring that young people have access to books and the vital part reading plays in opening doors for future generations.”
📕 With a shared passion for books and a deep commitment to children reading for pleasure, The Queen and author J.K. Rowling have met at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh.
Her Majesty and Ms Rowling discussed the importance of ensuring that young people have access to… pic.twitter.com/Yx1Xy6olqC
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) June 30, 2026
Rowling over the last decade has emerged as a vocal opponent of transgender rights. Her meeting with Camilla took place on the last day of Pride month.
United Kingdom
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to resign
Announcement comes after Labour Party election loses, ambassador scandal
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday announced he will step down once his party chooses his successor.
Starmer succeeded Rishi Sunak of the Conservative Party in No. 10 Downing St. in 2024.
The Labour Party included a ban on so-called conversion therapy in England and Wales in its elections manifesto. King Charles III in last month’s King Speech that he delivered in the British House of Lords said a transgender-inclusive ban is among the British government’s legislative priorities.
Charles delivered his King’s Speech days after the Labour lost more than 1,000 council seats in local and regional elections. The May 7 vote took place against the backdrop of widespread criticism over Starmer’s decision to appoint Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the U.S., despite his ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
Former Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham is seen as the frontrunner to become Labour’s new leader — and the UK’s next prime minister. Burnham was sworn in as an MP in the House of Commons hours after Starmer announced his resignation.
Starmer in his resignation announcement said he expects his successor will be in place before MPs return from their summer recess on Sept. 1.
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