CI takes legal action over Civil Service ‘Pride’

The Christian Institute has warned that Civil Service endorsement of LGBT Pride breaches rules on impartiality and is launching a legal challenge.

On Wednesday, the Institute notified Cabinet Secretary Sir Chris Wormald of its intention to seek judicial review of Civil Service participation in Pride events. It also called for an end to rainbow lanyards and the use of ‘preferred pronouns’ in public-facing email signatures.

Its legal action follows a recent High Court ruling against Northumbria Police, which said participation in Pride marches breached the force’s impartiality duties. In taking on the Civil Service, the CI has instructed Conrathe Gardner Solicitors – the same law firm that helped gender critic Linzi Smith in her victory over Northumbria Police.

Statutory duty

The Civil Service Code states that all employees are expected to carry out their roles with “integrity, honesty, objectivity and impartiality”.

Staff must act “in a way that is fair, just and equitable” and that does not “unjustifiably favour or discriminate against particular individuals or interests”.

Guidance on Diversity and Inclusion and Impartiality in the Civil Service calls on civil servants “to ensure individual personal and political views do not, and are not perceived to, influence our advice or actions”.

‘Profoundly political’

Deputy Director of The Christian Institute Simon Calvert said: “The law is clear that civil servants must maintain impartiality on controversial political issues. Whether one agrees with it or not, no one can deny that the LGBTQ Pride movement and its hard-line gender ideology are profoundly political.

“Pride London, for example, attended by Whitehall-based civil servants, has even banned political parties because they don’t support its political demands, which include puberty blockers and gender self-ID.”

Mr Calvert, pointing to Linzi Smith’s successful judicial review of Northumbria Police, said: “Involvement in Pride signals support for a highly contentious set of political demands. It is inappropriate for civil servants to be officially endorsing Pride.”

Ideological compromise

Mr Calvert continued: “I have been working in public policy for decades. I’ve been shocked by how many civil servants wear Pride lanyards in our meetings with them, even when those meetings are specifically about the clashes between LGBTQ politics and the Christian faith.

Sitting in front of a phalanx of civil servants in rainbow lanyards gives the impression that their minds are closed on the issues we are discussing. It certainly does not communicate the kind of neutrality that taxpayers expect of civil servants.”

The CI argues that wearing rainbow lanyards, declaring preferred pronouns in public-facing emails and officially representing the Civil Service at Pride marches are clearly political and in breach of the law on Civil Service impartiality.

High Court victory

In July, the High Court ruled in favour of Newcastle United fan Linzi Smith, concluding that Northumbria Chief Constable Vanessa Jardine and other officers’ participation in ‘Newcastle Pride in the City 2024’ was likely to be seen as an expression of support “for the views and the cause which the March sought to promote”.

Mr Justice Linden explained that “institutional support for gender ideology and transgender rights” was further expressed by uniformed police officers marching with the ‘Police Pride’ flag and by a static display which “included the Northumbria Police badge and the blue, pink and white of the transgender flag”. Rainbow branded police cars also came in for criticism.

He warned that such actions impact the public’s trust in the force’s ability to “fairly and impartially” handle clashes between gender critics and trans activists.

Scottish Parliament staff, who are not civil servants, are no longer permitted to wear rainbow lanyards at Holyrood. A parliamentary spokesman said that the decision was to help “avoid any potential misperception over the absolute impartiality of all Scottish parliamentary staff”.