Far-right French politician Marine Le Pen, who has pledged to abolish same-sex marriage, to is tipped to do well in the first round of the country’s Presidential election this week. France is set to go to the polls on Sunday to elect a new President to replace outgoing Socialist François Hollande. From the crowded field

Tens of thousands of people marched in Paris to revoke same-sex marriage on Sunday

Thousands of people marched in Paris today to call for the repeal of the Taubira law which legalised same-sex marriage. Marchers also protested against the use of assisted reproduction techniques and surrogate mothers to enable same-sex couples to have children. Police estimated the crowd at 24,000, while organisers gave a figure of 200,000. The demonstration

It’s official – France adopts a new legal gender recognition procedure!

The French parliament has voted to introduce a legal gender recognition procedure that is free from sterilisation and medicalisation. The National Assembly met in a plenary session on Wednesday 12 October to debate and vote on the 21st century justice law (La loi sur la justice au XX1eme siècle), which included provisions relating to legal

Transgender people win major victory in France

Transgender people won a major victory on July 12, with France about to join a growing number of countries that allow people to legally change their gender without surgery. This means no more psychiatrist certificates, no more proofs of sex reassignment surgery: above all, an end to the demand for sterilization. The National Assembly voted

France ends ban on gay men donating blood

Gay men in France will now be allowed to donate blood, authorities have announced. The ban had drawn criticism from civil rights groups claiming it was discriminatory. France’s health minister announced the government was lifting its decades-long ban on gay men donating blood. The lifting of the ban would be enacted over an extended period

Stephen Brady was asked not to bring his partner to meet Prime Minister Tony Abbott on Anzac Day. According to Australian government officials, it is only permitted for ambassadors to bring their partners when the prime minister has their partner with them as well. Tony Abbott was not travelling with his wife, and therefore they say

France ‘refusing to back down’ over sending gay ambassador to the Vatican

France is refusing to back down over the selection of an ambassador – after nominating a gay man to go to Vatican City. It emerged earlier this month that the country’s government had selected openly gay diplomat Laurent Stefanini to head to the home of the Catholic Church – which remains opposed to LGBT rights.

France is sending a gay ambassador to Vatican City

The Holy See is to receive its first ever openly gay ambassador in the form of France’s Laurent Stefanini and not everybody’s sure they’re too thrilled about that. The smallest country in Europe and its only remaining absolute monarchy is about to get its first ever openly gay ambassador from another country. Vatican City, home

French President calls for tougher laws on anti-gay and anti-Semitic hate speech

French President Francois Hollande has vowed to introduce tougher penalties for racist, anti-Semitic and homophobic crimes in the wake of last month’s terrorist attacks in Paris. Speaking yesterday at an annual dinner hosted by the country’s Jewish community, the President called for “faster, more effective sanctions” against hate speech and added: “I want such speech to

France hands out first fines for anti-gay tweets

Three French Twitter users were fined this week for sending tweets that included homophobic hashtags. It’s the first time a French court has handed out convictions for homophobic abuse on Twitter. The convictions date back to offences committed in 2013 when several homophobic hashtags appeared on Twitter in France, including “Gays must die because…”, (#Lesgaysdoiventdisparaîtrecar).