Not long after he made his first speech to the nation as prime minister on Friday, July 5, outside Number 10 Downing Street, the leader of the Labour Party introduced the members of his inner circle.

Key appointments see Angela Rayner become deputy prime minister and levelling up secretary, Lisa Nandy become culture, media and sport secretary, and Wes Streeting become health secretary.

The announcements come at a trying time for Labour in terms of support from the LGBTQ+ community. In recent months, Labour has faced scrutiny over its stance on trans issues and back-pedalling of long-held promises.

In July 2023, the party announced in a column in The Guardian that it no longer supported self-ID for trans people, a policy it was a firm supporter of in 2020.

Starmer has also flip-flopped on his answer to the anti-trans dog whistle “what is a woman?”, in recent months.

He previously said for “99.9 per cent of women” their womanhood is “completely biological”, before changing his perspective to echo Sunak’s viewpoint and saying a woman is an “adult female”.

Just days before the election, he stated that trans women – even those with a Gender Recognition Certificate – “don’t” and “shouldn’t” have the “right” to enter women’s spaces, such as public toilets or changing rooms.

The party has also faced criticism from the LGBTQ+ community for MP Rosie Duffield’s comments on trans people.

As such, LGBTQ+ people will want to know that Starmer is surrounded by senior Labour figures that have their interests at heart in government – here’s a rundown of the most vocal LGBTQ+ allies in cabinet.