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The areas of England and Wales with the highest proportion of LGB+ residents are represented in parliament almost exclusively by Labor MPs, new census data show.

Only three of the top 50 constituencies with the highest percentage of people identifying as gay or lesbian, bisexual or other sexual orientation (LGB+) are represented by a Conservative: the cities of London and Westminster (27th with 6 .8%); Lincoln (35th place, 5.9%) and Bournemouth West (43rd place, 5.5%).

By contrast, 42 of the 50 are Labour-held seats, including eight of the top 10 and two of the top three: Brighton Kemptown (2nd 10.3%) and Vauxhall (3rd 10.0%). .

The figures have been compiled by the PA news agency using data from England and Wales from the 2021 census, which was the first of its kind to ask people to register their sexual orientation.

The constituency with the highest proportion of LGB+ residents is Brighton Pavilion, at 11.9%, represented since 2010 by the only Green Party MP, Caroline Lucas.

The rest of the top 50 is made up of three seats held by independents, all former Labor MPs, and one Liberal Democrat.

Many constituencies at the top of the table are in large cities or areas with large student populations, such as Manchester, Leeds, Cardiff and Bristol, while 23 of the top 50 are in London.

The findings are consistent with previous census analysis by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), which showed that local authorities with a relatively high proportion of people aged 16-24 identifying as LGB+ tended to have one or more universities. .

The bottom end of the table is more dominated by rural and less built-up areas, although the bottom 50 include some London seats currently held by Labour, such as Dagenham & Rainham and Ilford North, as well as the Buckinghamshire seat of Chesham & Amersham which the Liberal Democrats won the Conservatives in a 2021 by-election.

There is a matching pattern in the top and bottom sections of the list, with Conservative MPs representing exactly one fifth (20) of the 100 seats with the highest proportion of LGB+ residents, but four fifths (80) of the 100 seats with the lower ratio.

But while the vast majority of seats towards the bottom of the list are currently held by the Tories, including 39 of the bottom 50, three of the bottom five are held by Labour: Birmingham Hodge Hill, Luton North and Sefton Central. .

Rayleigh & Wickford in Essex, a seat held by the Conservatives, has the lowest ratio of the 573 constituencies in England and Wales, at 1.5%.

Census data for England and Wales is being released in stages by the ONS, with constituency level figures released in recent weeks.

The data shows a similar trend for seats with the highest proportion of residents who told the census that their gender identity is different from their registered sex at birth, with Labor seats accounting for 42 of the top 50, including nine of the top 10 and the entire top five.

Birmingham Ladywood tops this list, with 1.64% of residents saying their gender identity is different from what they were at birth, followed by East Ham and Tottenham (both 1.57%), then Edmonton ( 1.51%) and Brent Central (1.47%).

These figures are shown with two decimal places because the differences between the percentages are very small.

Some 46 of the bottom 50 seats are held by Tories, with the lowest figure going to Derbyshire Dales (0.19%), followed by Rayleigh & Wickford and South West Devon (both 0.21%).

Cities and areas with large numbers of students once again dominate constituencies towards the top of the list, although only one seat appears in the top 10 LGB+ and gender: Bermondsey and Old Southwark in south London, in hands of Independent MP (ex-Labour) Neil Coyle. .

Responding to the findings, Robbie de Santos, director of communications for the LGBT charity Stonewall, said: “The 2021 census showed what many of us already knew: LGBTQ+ people live in all parts of England and Wales. We are part of every community and always have been.

“The census also showed that the proportion of people willing to identify as LGBTQ+ increases among the younger generations, who tend to live in more urban areas.

“However, LGBTQ+ people live in every constituency and there are many more people who love and care about us across the country. Every political party and potential parliamentary candidate must consider how our community and loved ones will view the parties’ commitments to an LGBTQ+ inclusive society at the polls.”

The census was carried out in England and Wales on March 21, 2021 and included for the first time a question on sexual orientation, which was voluntary and was asked only to people aged 16 and over.

Respondents could choose between heterosexual or heterosexual; gay or lesbian; bisexual; and “other sexual orientation,” which also invited people to write in the orientation with which they identified.

Some 44.9 million people answered the question (92.5% of the population aged 16 and over).