Equalities minister Mike Freer has accused Boris Johnson of creating an “atmosphere of hostility” towards LGBT+ people as he became the 32nd figure to quit Government in 24 hours.
Mr Freer, who is gay and was responsible for steering a proposed ban on conversion therapy, has been tipped to resign for weeks – unrelatedly from events in Downing Street – over disagreements with No 10.
In his resignation letter on Wednesday, Mr Freer said: “I have been grateful for the opportunity to create focus in… working to try and improve the lives of LGBT+ people in the UK.”
He added: “However, I feel that we are moving away from the One Nation Conservative party I joined, not least in creating an atmosphere of hostility for LGBT+ people and I regret I can no longer defend policies I fundamentally disagree with.
“Since my election in 2010, I have striven to work to represent my constituents with the support of my local party and members. I now feel that we have let down our constituents and our supporters.”
His comments were echoed by Peter Gibson, who later quit as a Government PPS.
Mr Gibson said: “On Saturday last week I marched with LGBT+ Conservatives at London Pride. As a gay MP, that should have been a liberating, enjoyable experience, instead due to the damage our party has inflicted on itself over the failure to include trans people in the ban on conversion therapy, it was a humiliating experience and signalled to me the immense damage that has been so needlessly inflicted after years of hard work by many to rebuild the damage of Section 28.”
Equalities minister Kemi Badenoch also quit earlier on Wednesday, meaning that Liz Truss, who is double-jobbing as Foreign Secretary and Minister for Women and Equalities – is the only MP left in the Government Equalities Office.
Downing Street has been accused of meddling over conversion therapy in a bid to block the ban from protecting transgender people.
Critics, including LGBT+ Conservative MPs, have accused the Government of unfairly targeting transgender people on issues including conversion therapy in a bid to whip up “culture war” votes.
In recent weeks alone, Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries has called on British sporting bodies to impose a near-total ban on transgender athletes, while the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has amended planning rules to restrict public buildings from offering gender-neutral toilets “at the expense of” other facilities.
Earlier this week, the Government-installed children’s tsar Dame Rachel de Souza vowed to review LGBT+-inclusive sex and relationship education materials used in schools, taking aim at “horrendous” examples of materials supplied by outside groups.
Mr Freer made his frustration known shortly before his resignation, telling a Parliamentary committee: “Weaponising any element of the LGBT+ community for a quick headline which then allows the whole Government programme to be blown off course, I think is just something I find very difficult to deal with.”
George is Digismak’s reported cum editor with 13 years of experience in Journalism