Margot James, the Conservative MP for Stourbridge, West Midlands (Picture: Getty Images)

The UK parliament has 32 openly LGBT members – more than Sweden, which has 12, and the Netherlands, which has 10.

While this figure easily dwarfs other countries across the world, they represent only five per cent of all MPs in Westminster.

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This year’s election saw a rise in gay MPs from the 26 elected in 2010.


Surprisingly to some, perhaps, it was the Tories that had the most LGBT candidates in this election, with 39 men and three women.

20-year-old MP Mhairi Black tucking into a plate of chips on the House of Commons terrace (Picture: Twitter)

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The New Statesman’s analysis found that of the 32 gay members in the Commons, 13 were Labour, 12 were Conservative and six were SNP.

Of the incumbent gay parliamentary candidates in this election only one lost: Eric Ollerenshaw, the former Conservative MP for Lancaster and Fleetwood.

Wes Streeting the Labour MP for Ilford North (Picture: Glenn Copus)

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