While the new cabinet is diverse in some ways, its views on LGBTQ+ aren’t as much, say activists (Pictures: Getty)

New prime minister Rishi Sunak has cobbled together his cabinet — but where do they all stand on LGBTQ+ rights?

With faces new and old, Sunak’s team appeared to showcase his desire to unify the party after one of British politics’ most panic-stricken times.

The rogues’ gallery of MPs with their feet under the cabinet table ranges from Sunak’s former leadership competitors to fired cabinet ministers.

As much as Sunak’s cabinet is one of stability, it’s a different story when it comes to LGBTQ+ rights, said ex-government advisor on LGBTQ+ rights, Jayne Ozanne.

‘The prime minister’s reshuffle of the cabinet is one of the most divisive and alarming in recent years,’ she told Metro.co.uk.

‘If he had wanted to bring reassurance and heal divisions, he has done the very opposite.’

Here’s where Sunak and his top team stand on LGBTQ+ rights.

Prime minister Rishi Sunak

Rishi Sunak, long considered a rising star of the Conservative Party, was handed the keys to Number 10 this week (Picture: Simon Walker/ No10 Downing Street)

Sunak has never voted on LGBTQ+ rights — but there are some clues as to what he thinks of LGBTQ+ Brits, in particular, trans people.

He sent mixed signals during his first leadership bid, saying trans women aren’t women at one husting before rallying against transphobia the next.

While stressing that he will ‘protect women’s rights’, he shared a Mail on Sunday story that cited an unnamed ally claiming Sunak is ‘critical of recent trends to erase women’ with gender-neutral language.

He went on to commit to banning trans women and non-binary people from competing against cis women in sports and to ‘protect’ single-sex services.

For Sunak, pupils should be ‘shielded from inappropriate material’ during sex and relationships classes.

But only days later, the Tory’s official LGBTQ+ wing, the LGBT+ Conservatives, asked him about the ‘rising problem of transphobia’ in the party.

He answered: ‘Prejudice against trans people is wrong. The Conservative Party is an open, welcoming family to everybody across society, no matter who they are and irrespective of their background.’

But Ozanne remains sceptical. She said: ‘If we are to judge the prime minister “by his actions”, right now they are severely wanting!’

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt

Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt (Picture: PA)

Jeremy Hunt has always been a steady hand when it comes to LGBTQ+ issues, having voted for marriage equality and anti-discrimination protections.

When Hunt was health secretary, the Department of Health and Social Care swatted down a petition calling for gender-affirming healthcare to be banned.

The department said all Brits have the ‘fundamental legal and ethical right to determine what happens to their own bodies’.

Justice secretary Dominic Raab

Dominic Raab is once again deputy prime minister and justice secretary (Picture: Reuters)

Dominic Raab’s LGBTQ+ history is patchy. He yayed for British same-sex marriage in 2013 but was absent when the vote came to Northern Ireland in 2019.

In August, he said trans prisoners should be housed according to their genitals, sources told The Mail on Sunday.

Of the nearly 80,000 prisoners in all of England and Wales, just 146 are trans women as of April 2021, according to the Ministry of Justice.

While his since-scrapped plan to overhaul the Human Rights Act to give UK courts more power would have thrown some landmark LGBTQ+ rights into jeopardy.

Home secretary Suella Braverman

Suella Braverman, who quit as Home Secretary last week, is back (Picture: PA)

As attorney general, Suella Braverman said schools should no longer teach ‘keywords’ about LGBTQ+ people and rallied against all things ‘woke’.

She also called on teachers to misgender trans pupils and make them use a ‘third’ bathroom.

Braverman said she ‘dreams’ of deporting asylum seekers to Rwanda as part of a migration pact rolled out under Boris Johnson and has expressed her intention to ban people from crossing the English Channel altogether.

Rainbow Migration, which supports LGBTQ+ refugees, said: ‘Both plans will put LGBTQ+ people seeking asylum in even greater danger.

‘We urge the new home secretary to reconsider and reverse the dangerous and ineffective policies of her predecessor and to create a kind and caring asylum system.’

Foreign secretary James Cleverly

James Cleverly has been reappointed as Foreign Secretary (Picture: EPA)

James Cleverly has never actually voted on LGBTQ+ bills while in Parliament but did support same-sex couples marrying as early as 2005 in a blog post.

Though, he has voted against keeping legislation which acts as the twin backbones for LGBTQ+ rights, the Human Rights Act and the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights.

And he was met with criticism only a day into the job when he said LGBTQ+ football fans at the World Cup should ‘compromise’ with Qatar laws that say gay men should be imprisoned or even killed.

Environment secretary Thérèse Coffey

Thérèse Coffey has moved from health to the environment (Picture: PA)

Thérèse Coffey was one of 136 Tories who voted against same-sex marriage before calling on the House of Lords to block it.

Nearly 10 years since, she told Sky News she hasn’t budged on the issue, telling the broadcaster: ‘I took the view at the time, and I still hold to that.’

As health secretary, she was accused of leaving the UK vulnerable to monkeypox, which has disproportionally impacted gay and bisexual men, by reportedly ignoring health expert advice to secure more vaccines.

Matthew Hodson, executive director of HIV information website aidsmap, was relieved to see Coffey give back the health portfolio.

‘LGBTQ+ people bear a number of health inequalities, not least in respect of emotional health and sexual health, so it is of concern when the health secretary has a poor voting record on LGBTQ+ equality issues, as Thérèse Coffey did,’ he said.

‘The decision not to procure additional vaccine supplies by Coffey remains a cause for concern.’

International trade secretary Kemi Badenoch

Kemi Badenoch was given both the trade and equalities briefs (Picture: Getty Images Europe

Kemi Badenoch has also been appointed minister for women and equalities, giving her massive sway over LGBTQ+ policy-making.

LGBTQ+ activists were quick to raise the alarm over her return to the Government Equalities Office (GEO), taking over the former role of Liz Truss.

Badenoch has, among other things, said she felt ’empowered’ to push back against trans rights when serving during the Johnson ministry.

As junior equalities minister, she held a secret meeting with the LGB Alliance, widely seen as anti-trans, as well as a so-called ‘ex-gay’ group.

Badenoch once described trans women as ‘men using women’s bathrooms’ in leaked audio, adding: ‘We’ve got gay marriage and civil partnerships, so what are transsexuals looks for?’

‘My gravest concern is the highly divisive decision to give Ms Badenoch to the equalities brief,’ said Ozanne, describing Badenoch as a ‘gender-critical “war on woke” warrior’ who ‘fuels gender wars’.

‘I am now deeply fearful for the wellbeing of LGBTQ+ people in Britain and can only hope that our international partners will try to hold her to account as seeks to do trade deals with them,’ she added.

Defence secretary Ben Wallace

Ben Wallace has been a long-time critic of marriage equality (Picture: EPA)

Ben Wallace has made his opposition to same-sex marriage all too clear.

He voted against it and was absent from the House of Commons when MPs voted on same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland in 2019.

In 2017, he tweeted: ‘Voting against gay marriage doesn’t make anyone homophobic.’

Throughout his time holding the defence portfolio, Wallace has said allowing gay people to serve in the army would cause ‘sexual friction’ and said only women soldiers can wear make-up.

Health secretary Steve Barclay

One sexual health activist was optimistic about Steve Barclay leading the nation’s response to HIV and monkeypox (Picture: Simon Walker / HM Treasury)

Steve Barclay, while absent from the marriage equality vote in Northern Ireland, has backed legalising it in Britain and for armed personnel outside the UK.

‘Steve Barclay,’ Hodson said, ‘has a more positive record on gay rights and this is welcome.’

He faces two big issues when it comes to the health of LGBTQ+ Brits, Hodson said, and that’s curbing monkeypox infections and ending HIV infections.

‘The government has pledged to end new HIV infections by 2030 but this will require sustained resources and commitment,’ he added.

‘The goal is too important for it to be neglected. We will not achieve equality for LGBTQ+ people without health equality.’

Business secretary Grant Shapps

Grant Shapps has generally been an LGBTQ+ ally (Picture: AP)

During the leadership race to replace Johnson, Grant Shapps didn’t take a page from the anti-trans playbook like some of his contenders.

Asked on Sky News if trans women are women, he said: ‘I think we owe everybody love and respect. People should be able to get on and live their lives.

‘There’s clearly a biological basis on your birth but if people want to … transition gender, that is their choice and they will always have my support for me.’

As business secretary, Shapps should be keen to keep this support going, said Stonewall communication and external affairs director Robbie De Santos.

‘In recent years the UK has slipped down the global ranking of nations on LGBTQ+ equality, but now is the time for inclusive values that bring people together to face these challenges,’ he said.

‘A more inclusive Britain is good for communities, good for businesses, and important for Britain’s position as a global leader.’

Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Oliver Dowden

Oliver Dowden is not a fan of ‘woke’ issues (Picture: Getty Images)

Oliver Dowden, the former Tory chair, told anti-LGBTQ+ think-tank The Heritage Foundation in February that he’s against ‘painful woke psychodrama’.

On ‘woke warriors’, he said: ‘For them, nothing is sacred.

‘A West confident in its values would not be obsessing over pronouns, or indeed seeking to decolonise mathematics.’

Conservative Party chair Nadhim Zahawi

Nadhim Zahawi’s leadership bid was marred with criticism when he appeared to suggest bringing Section 28 back (Picture: Getty Images Europe)

Nadhim Zahawi, a former equalities minister and education secretary, has suggested teachers should out trans kids.

His leadership bid saw him say young people should be ‘protected from damaging and inappropriate nonsense’, bringing fears from LGBTQ+ campaigners about a return to Section 28 if he came to power.

The Thatcher-era law banned schools and local authorities from mentioning anything about LGBTQ+ rights and lives.

Shaira Bambi, the co-founder of grassroots group Trans Activism UK, expressed hesitation over saying Sunak’s cabinet is ‘diverse’.

It is in some ways, they said, but their views on LGBTQ+ are often the same.

‘For the LGBTQ+ community and BIPOC community, the cabinet is disastrous with extreme anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment,’ Bambi said.

‘I am happy to repeat what many other British people of colour including queer people of colour have been saying.

‘Rishi Sunak is not a “win” for diversity and is in fact dangerous along with his cabinet.’

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From marriage equality to their views on trans rights, here’s where the Cabinet stands on LGBTQ+ rights.