http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,6903,1664690,00.html
3.6m people in Britain are gay - official
First Whitehall figure settles long-running debate
Denis Campbell, social affairs correspondent
Sunday December 11, 2005
The Observer
Six per cent of the population, or about 3.6 million Britons, are
either gay or lesbian, the government's first attempt to quantify the
homosexual population has concluded.
Whitehall officials have answered the much-debated question 'how many
of us are gay?' by declaring that the true number is one in 16.66.
Previous answers have ranged from one in five to as few as one in a
hundred, and many people have believed the figure to be one in ten.
Treasury actuaries came up with the estimate when analysing the
financial implications of the new Civil Partnerships Act, which comes
into force this month and allows same-sex partners to marry and gives
them similar rights to married couples in areas such as tax, pensions
and inheritance.
There are an estimated 1.5 million to two million gay men, lesbians
and bisexuals in the 30 million-strong workforce, according to the
Department of Trade and Industry. Given the UK population is just
under 60 million, that means that the gay community has between three
and four million members.
'This is a significant moment,' said Ben Summerskill, chief executive
of Stonewall, the gay equality campaign group. 'For the first time the
government has robustly acknowledged the existence of a substantial
number of gay people in modern Britain. This is welcome and long
overdue.
'Historically people have got bogged down in endless rows about this
with some of the more colourful gay activists insisting as many as 20
per cent of the population was gay, while people who were opposed to
gay equality, such as Norman Tebbit, claimed it was one in 100. Six
per cent feels like a sensible estimate.'
Publication of the figure comes as big name companies such as Barclays
bank, Hilton hotels and cosmetics giant L'Oreal join the growing rush
to cash in on a gay economy which is worth tens of billions of pounds.
Barclays has just received research which showed that gays and
lesbians enjoy a combined annual income of £60 billion.
It has recently funded 300,000 copies of a guide to civil partnerships
for same-sex couples, and in February is holding workshops at branches
in Brighton, Manchester, Birmingham, London and Blackpool, where staff
will guide gays and lesbians through the financial consequences of
marrying - and try to attract new gay customers in the process.
Barclays spokesman Michael O'Toole admitted the bank is very keen to
woo Britain's gays and lesbians by portraying itself as sympathetic to
gays' desire for equality. 'We want to position ourselves as the bank
of choice for Britain's gay and lesbian community,' he said.
'There's more of a push going on now to enter this market of about 2.5
million adults. It's a good time to do that because civil partnerships
remove a great injustice.' Staff have been advised to make gays feel
as comfortable as possible 'about their personal circumstances' if,
for example, they want to discuss getting a joint mortgage.
Advertisements in the gay press for the workshops will reinforce that
message.
The Hilton chain is trying to entice gay couples to hold their civil
partnership celebrations by offering tailor-made parties and even the
chance to hold the ceremony at some hotels.
Barclays' research revealed that gay and lesbian people have greater
disposable income than heterosexuals. Among the 1,000 gays who took
part, men had spent on average £626 and women £519 on holidays and
mini-breaks. Gay men also spent more than lesbians on clothing, £374
compared with £249, as well as furniture and fittings, where they
typically spent £300 to women's £263.
That reflects the fact that the typical gay man working full-time
earns an average £34,168, compared to £24,783 for a lesbian. Both
figures, though, are much higher than the salaries earned by the
average male and female British worker of £24,236 and £18,531
respectively.
Among the respondents, 40 per cent of the women and 25 per cent of the
men were professionals; 11 per cent of the women and 13 per cent of
the men were managers; five per cent of the women and six per cent of
the men were senior managers; and eight per cent of both sexes were
clerical and office workers.
Chasing the pink pound: companies trying to grab a slice of the £60bn
gay economy
Banking
Barclays bank is holding a series of seminars in cities where there is
a significant gay population to explain the financial implications of
civil partnerships to existing and potential gay and lesbian
customers. Has paid for 300,000 copies of Get hitched!, a guide to
'gay weddings' to help explain the rights and responsibilities
involved. Gives funds to gay rights group Stonewall and has floats at
Pride, the big gay festivals.
Leisure
Hilton Hotels is wooing gay couples to hold civil partnership
celebration parties at its 70 branches across the UK; some are
licensed to hold the registration ceremony itself. The Hilton Avisford
Park in Arundel, West Sussex, is holding its first 'gay Christmas'
break from 24-27 December for £599 a head.
Grooming
L'Oréal is advertising its Hydra Energetic Daily Anti-Fatigue Lotion
for men in publications such as FHM and Loaded with a man beside the
words 'You think you look the business. She thinks you look
overworked'. In publications such as Attitude and Gay Times, the 'she'
has become 'he'. Rob Robillard of L'Oréal Paris says: 'The gay market
is important to L'Oréal and our success with gay men is a key
priority.'
© Guardian Newspapers Limited 2005
--
Contempt of Congress meter reading-offscale.
Hello, theocracy with a fundamentalist US Supreme
Court who will ensure church and state are joined
at the hip like clergy and altar boys.
America 1776-Jan 2001 RIP
"As democracy is perfected, the office of president
represents, more and more closely, the inner soul
of the people. On some great and glorious day the
plain folks of the land will reach their heart's
desire at last and the White House will be adorned
by a downright moron." --- H.L. Mencken (1880 - 1956)
Religion is the original war crime.
-Michelle Malkin (Feb 26, 2005)
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