Germany has appointed the country’s first-ever commissioner dedicated to LGBT+ affairs.
Sven Lehmann from the German Greens was appointed by the new government on Wednesday to help Germany “become a pioneer country in the fight against discrimination”.
The 42-year-old MP will be in charge of preparing a “national action plan” to promote acceptance and protect diversity, according to the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs.
Lehmann will take up the post as part of the new coalition government led by Social Democrat Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
The Green MP has already been a party spokesperson on LGBT+ issues in Germany’s Bundestag between 2018 and 2021. His constituency of Cologne is also home to one of the country’s largest LGBT+ communities.
“The protection of people because of their sexual and gender identity must be guaranteed in the Basic Law,” he stated after his appointment.
“Everyone should be able to live freely, safely, and with equal rights,” Lehmann added.
The new ministerial delegate position was welcomed by a number of LGBT+ groups in Germany, including the Lesbian and Gay Association (LSVD).
Two transgender women — Tessa Ganserer and Nyke Slawik — were elected as MPs in Germany’s most diverse parliament yet after last September’s election.
