Ray has been a member of the House of Lords since 2011. He has been a vocal supporter of LGBTQIA+ rights and supports many HIV charities. He is currently Shadow Deputy Leader of the Labour Party in the House of Lords. For many of us this feels like a bleak time, from global instability to the cost-of-living crisis and its vital we remember there are politicians out there, like Ray, who continue to fight the good fight.

Who is inspiring you this LGBTQIA+ History Month?

I wouldn’t restrict it to one person, but a person who regularly inspires me in terms of his constant activity and commitment is Michael Cashman, who’s in the House of Lords, a fellow Labour Peer. He was, of course, very active in the establishment of Stonewall and very active ever since in terms of promoting LGBTQIA+ rights. He’s been particularly committed on the “plus” side recently to ensure that people understand that we all need to act in solidarity, we need to celebrate difference and support people. He is an inspiration daily.

Why does it remain important that we have a month marking our history?

If we are to understand where we want to go, we need to understand where we’ve been. All the rights that we’ve won, all the acceptance that we’ve gained can easily be taken away and I think that’s why it’s really important to understand that journey and how those rights were won. We’ve seen, throughout the world, how rights that have been gained can be taken away.