Charting progress :A comparative analysis of national LGBTIQ equality action plans in the EU

In November 2020, the European Commission announced its first-ever LGBTIQ Equality Strategy. Recognising that discrimination, violence and social exclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, non-binary, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ) people persists throughout the European Union (EU), the Commission proposed several action points to advance LGBTIQ equality in the EU, in close cooperation with the Member States. Based on a wide-scale survey among LGBTIQ people, the EU Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA) reported in 2020 that significant proportions of LGBTIQ people continue to experience discrimination, harassment and violence, simply because of their sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression and/or sex characteristics. Comparing the results with those of the previous survey in 2012, FRA noticed ‘little, if any progress in the way LGBTI people experience their human and fundamental rights in daily life’. Overall, 43 % of respondents felt discriminated against in the year before the survey was conducted. Discrimination occurs in all spheres of life, including employment, access to goods and services, healthcare settings, education etc. In addition to listing its own objectives and operational strategies, the Commission encouraged Member States to build on existing best practice and to develop their own action plans towards LGBTIQ equality. In order to support national governments, the recently established LGBTIQ Equality Subgroup of the HighLevel Group on non-discrimination, equality and diversity drafted guidelines that identify best practice concerning the adoption, implementation and evaluation of national action plans on LGBTIQ equality.