I believe that this new partnership will challenge the institutional roots of prejudice and make Wales

Angela Mason, Stonewall

Welsh Finance and Communities Minister Edwina Hart is set to unveil the LGB (Lesian Gay Bisexual) Forum Cymru, at Cardiff City Hall.

It is an umbrella organisation for homosexual and bisexual groups and communities who, organisers say, have traditionally been discriminated against.

In Wales there are around 250,000 lesbian and gay people and suicides in homosexuals are seven times higher than the UK average.

Welsh renaissance

Devised over six months, the group has been jointly funded by the assembly and gay campaign organisation Stonewall.

Stonewall executive director Angela Mason said: "Not long ago, the Welsh lesbian and gay community was very small and many people were afraid to be open about their sexuality.

"Now there is something of a Welsh renaissance. I believe that this new partnership will challenge the institutional roots of prejudice and make Wales a place where every lesbian and gay man can live freely, openly and safely."

The organisation aims to build bridges

Assembly Members, Church in Wales representatives and celebrities will attend the launch of the group, which has attracted grants under the Promoting Equality in Wales Project Development Fund from the assembly.

The aim is to challenge discrimination by approaching the assembly and institutions at all levels.

Co-chair John Sam Jones said: "From today, lesbians and gay men in Wales are destined to be dealt with fairly and without discrimination."

Mardi Gras

Colleague Gloria Jenkins, mother of a gay son, said: "The assembly has responded to the call for fairness and justice and their backing will ensure that lesbian, gay and bisexual concerns are heard alongside others."

The launch of the forum comes in the run-up to the weekend Mardi Gras in Cardiff - a sign of increased confidence amongst homosexuals in the capital.

After just two years, the event has become the fastest-growing lesbian and gay event in the UK, with police expecting between 15,000 and 20,000 people to turn out at Bute Park.

The inaugural party in 1999 attracted 5,000 and coincided with a conference on hate crime which urged homosexuals to report homophobic crime to the police. South Wales Police will hold a similar conference on Thursday.