The number of people who identify as lesbian, gay or bisexual has doubled in the UK, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
This number increased from 1.6% in 2014 to 3.1% in 2020, marking a rise of 2.7% and almost double the percentage from eight years ago.
The rise was seen in both men or women, increasing from 1.9% to 3.4% and 1.4% to 2.8%, respectively.
Those aged 16 to 24 years are the most likely to identify as lesbian, gay or bisexual at 8%, which breaks down to 2.7% who are gay or lesbian and 5.3% who are bisexual.
In 2020, women were most likely to identify as bisexual than men at a rate of 1.6% and 0.9%, respectively.
However, being gay or lesbian was more common among men (2.5%) than women (1.1%).
Almost three quarters (72.5%) of lesbian, gay or bisexual people in the UK had never been married or in a civil partnership as of 2020.
Slightly less than a quarter (23.7%) were married or in a civil partnership at the time, which the ONS says “may reflect the younger age structure of the LGB population and that the legislation for same-sex civil partnerships and same-sex marriage is relatively recent.”
Our latest data on sexual orientation shows an estimated 3.1% of the UK population (aged 16+) identified as lesbian, gay or bisexual (LGB) in 2020.
This is an increase from 2.7% in 2019 and almost double the percentage from 2014 (1.6%) ➡️ https://t.co/0gFoA82PM9 pic.twitter.com/dErXxZYyzn
— Office for National Statistics (ONS) (@ONS) May 25, 2022
The data can be viewed in full here.
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