ILGA-Europe Rainbow Index - ReportOUT response: the UK once topped the table is now 22nd out of 49 countries
- ReportOUT
- 3 days ago
- 2 min read
ReportOUT CEO Drew Dalton explains what this means for LGBTQ+ human rights and the UK. Since this ILGA Europe Index analysis, the UK government has announced plans this week for a comprehensive trans inclusive ban on conversion therapies in the King's Speech, the government's legislative programme.
Drew Dalton CEO
The latest ILGA-Europe Rainbow Map is both a celebration of progress and a stark warning about the fragility of LGBTQI+ rights across Europe. Countries such as Spain, Malta, Iceland, Belgium and Denmark continue to demonstrate what political leadership and meaningful legal protections can look like when governments are willing to act decisively in support of equality and human rights. Spain’s rise to the top of the Index reflects sustained investment in equality legislation, protections for trans communities, and a clear public commitment to inclusion.
A decade ago, the UK was widely seen as a global leader on LGBTQI+ equality. Today, stagnation and regression, particularly around trans rights, legal gender recognition, healthcare access, intersex protections, asylum protections, and the failure to ban conversion practices, have significantly damaged that reputation.
At the other end of the Index, we continue to see deeply concerning conditions in countries where LGBTQI+ people face systemic discrimination, shrinking civil society space, attacks on freedom of expression, and barriers to even the most basic protections. These rankings are not abstract statistics; they reflect the lived realities of people navigating hostility, exclusion, and fear simply for being who they are.
The United Kingdom’s position, now sitting in 22nd place out of 49 countries, should be a wake-up call to political leaders across all nations of the UK.
A decade ago, the UK was widely seen as a global leader on LGBTQI+ equality. Today, stagnation and regression, particularly around trans rights, legal gender recognition, healthcare access, intersex protections, asylum protections, and the failure to ban conversion practices, have significantly damaged that reputation.
ILGA-Europe’s findings make clear that the UK’s declining position is not because equality has ‘gone too far’, but because progress has stalled while other countries have moved forward. Increasingly hostile rhetoric, lengthy waiting times for trans healthcare, restrictions affecting trans young people, and the broader politicisation of LGBTQI+ rights have all contributed to this decline.
Across Europe, we are witnessing organised anti-rights movements attempting to roll back decades of progress. The Rainbow Map reminds us that equality is never guaranteed. Rights can advance, but they can also be eroded when governments fail to protect communities from hate, discrimination, and exclusion.
At ReportOUT, we continue to stand in solidarity with LGBTQI+ communities globally, particularly those working under increasingly hostile conditions. The Rainbow Map is not simply a ranking — it is a measure of political courage, accountability, and whether governments are genuinely committed to dignity, safety, and freedom for all people.
Full analysis:
