Just 1.6% of British people are gay or lesbian, according to latest national statistics.
In a study by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the results of which have just been released, of 247,623 people polled (with 238,206 valid answers), 92.8% identified as heterosexual, with 1.1% gay or lesbian and 0.5% bisexual. A further 0.3% described themselves as ‘other’.
The ONS stated that the latest figures revealed that there has been no significant change in the LGB population in Britain since 2013.
Commenting on the figures, The Christian Institute said the findings were a challenge to previous estimates, compiled by homosexual support groups and endorsed by the British government, which placed the numbers of gay people in the country at between five and seven percent, and sometimes as high as 10%.
Countering claims in some quarters that gay people remain reluctant to reveal their sexual orientation, the Institute pointed out that the ONS survey was framed – with use of unique reference numbers – so as to allow respondents to disclose their sexuality without anyone else knowing their answer.
“The ONS has revealed that they spent three years perfecting the way in which the question was worded to ensure that they got the most accurate result,” the Institute said. “In addition all of the respondents had agreed to take part in the survey and knew the nature of the questions they would face beforehand.”
The Christian Institute went on to quote Stephen Hicks, of the ONS, who defended the survey findings.
“The estimate we’ve produced and published is in line with other surveys that ask similar questions in the UK and also in line with the pilot surveys that we carried out between 2006 and 2008.”