Will Young condemns ‘terrifying’ Tory comments about LGBTQ+ people: ‘I’m scared as a gay man’
Will Young plans to emigrate if the Tories are re-elected. (Getty)
Will Young has revealed that he plans to emigrate if the Tory Party is re-elected, following their recent slew of attacks against LGBTQ+ people.
The singer is among the many Britons who have condemned Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Home Secretary Suella Braverman for their concerning comments about the LGBTQ+ community that were creating “a climate of fear.”
Young, who came out as gay shortly after winning Pop Idol in 2002, had been speaking to The Mirror at a Labour conference in Liverpool when he admitted that, after last week’s horrific comments from the Conservative Party, it’s now Labour or bust for him – and he doesn’t think he’s the only one.
“I have felt very let down as a citizen. But now I feel very excited about the prospect of a change in government. I don’t think I’m the only person,” he said.
“I feel like we have to remind ourselves that we do live in a democracy and that you can affect change. The power is with the people and I’m a big believer in that.
“I really do think people believe in Labour. They are so tired. People feel let down and are hopeful for Labour.”
And if the Labour Party aren’t voted into power, Will Young plans to emigrate once and for all.
The loaded decision comes shortly after Home Secretary Suella Braverman warned conservatives that a “hurricane” of migrants were on their way to Britain – a statement she made just days after claiming that asylum seekers were pretending to be LGBTQ+ to gain entry to the UK.
“I won’t stay in this country if they win. No way. It’s too terrifying,” said Young.
“I feel scared when you see a Home Secretary stand up and pick on LGBT migrants and talking about hurricanes.
“They’re picking on minorities, it’s just terrifying. I don’t think they’re thinking about people in this country. They’re just not solving the problems.”
The “Leave Right Now” singer confessed that the Tory Party’s recent extremeist comments have made him feel “a bit scared as a gay man.”
“I haven’t really seen that before,” he mused.
“It’s weird that I’m in my 40s seeing politicians making such radical statements. I’ve seen a lot of improvements – gay marriage, equal rights.
“I’ve seen a lot of rights come my way and now we are seeing a Conservative Party going for minorities. I thought we’d got better.”
Young’s comments come shortly after new findings from the Home Office that a sharp rise in hate crimes against trans people could have been fuelled by anti-trans comments from politicians.
Data released by the British government on Thursday (5 October) revealed there were 145,214 hate crimes recorded by police in England and Wales in 2022-2023, a slight 5 per cent decrease compared to the previous year.
Yet, hate crimes against the LGBTQ+ community, particularly trans people, remain high.
Transphobic hate crimes rose in England and Wales by 11 per cent to 4,732 recorded offences in 2022-2023.
The Home Office said in their report that transgender issues had been “heavily discussed by politicians, the media and on social media” over the last year, which it said “may have led to an increase in these offences.”
It added that the government’s focus on transgender issues could also have led to “more awareness in the police in the identification and recording of these crimes.”
Despite these findings, PM Rishi Sunak has doubled down on his recent transphobic comments, despite being condemned by MPs, charities, activists, and the LGBTQ+ community.
In an interview last week, at the Meeting of the European Political Community, Sunak was asked if he regretted his comments that “a man is a man” and a “woman is a woman.”
To this, he replied: “No, I think a man is a man and a woman is a woman, I think most people watching this program will think that that’s common sense and that’s just a fact of biology.
“Now, of course, this is always going to be passionate, tolerant country. That’s how we always are but we can’t ignore fundamental facts of biology and saying those things shouldn’t be controversial.”
He then reiterates that most people will think it’s “just common sense”.
