Free to love, free to be: The EU’s new LGBTIQ+ strategy

Social acceptance of LGBTIQ+ people has increased across the EU in the last five years. Some 75% of people say they are comfortable to have gay, lesbian or bisexual colleagues. But LGBTIQ+ people continue to experience disproportionate and unacceptable levels of hate, violence and discrimination. Around one in three LQBTIQ+ people still report experiencing discrimination in the past 12 months. 

To defend equality and inclusion whenever they are under threat, the EU has launched its LGBTIQ+ equality strategy for 2026-2030. It builds on the previous strategy for 2020-2025 and will go further in ensuring LGBTIQ+ equality is mainstreamed across all EU policies.  

The new strategy sets out 3 key areas of action: 

• protecting LGBTIQ+ people
  • from hate-motivated harassment and violence through a new action plan against cyberbullying and the creation of a knowledge hub to collect intelligence on illegal hate online
  • from discrimination, by enforcing relevant EU laws and by continuing to fund civil society organisations that defend the rights of LGBTIQ+ people 
  • from conversion practices, which seek to forcibly change people’s sexual orientation or gender identity, by analysing them and considering appropriate measures as well as considering the European Citizens’ Initiative to ban such practices  
• empowering LGBTIQ+ people through
  • equality bodies, by ensuring that they are effective in promoting LGBTIQ+ rights
  • rainbow families, by encouraging EU countries to adopt the Recognition of Parenthood proposal 
  • promoting inclusion at workplace, working with the EU Platform of Diversity Charters to support LGBTIQ+ employees  
• engaging society to advance LGBTIQ+ equality by
  • calling on all EU countries to adopt national strategies or actions plans on LGBTIQ+ equality
  • improving the data collection and analysis to better understand the real-life experiences of LGBTIQ+ people
  • launching an “LGBTIQ+ Policy Forum”, a direct platform for exchange between civil society and the European Commission   

The Commission will publish a report on the implementation of employment equality rules in 2026 and continue to ensure their rigorous application. Alongside this, the Commission will set out new guidance on inclusive hiring practices. 

For more information 

Actions for LGBTIQ equality 

Equality and inclusion: key actions (2020-2025) 

Equality and inclusion 

Press release: Commission builds on Union of Equality with adoption of new LGBTIQ+ Equality strategy

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