Telegraph: Gay rights law 'being forced through'
22/11/2006
By
ILGA-Europe
Controversial new gay rights laws are being
bulldozed through parliament despite protests from Churches and other groups.
The Sexual Orientation Regulations, which the
Government appeared to have dropped a few weeks
ago, are being fast-tracked in Northern Ireland, using direct rule powers.
They have even be toughened up in what critics
believe is a dry run for a similar move in the rest of Britain next spring.
The legislation would prevent gays or lesbians
being discriminated against in the "provision of goods and services".
This could include being turned away from a hotel
or a shop but might also require schools to give
equal prominence in sex education classes to both
homosexual and heterosexual practices.
Faith groups are concerned that they will no
longer be able to put forward a strongly-held
belief that homosexuality is a sin. Churches have
said they also object to being forced into
letting same-sex couples adopt children in their care.
The UK-wide regulations were due to be voted on
in parliament last month but the Government put
them off for six months because of an
unexpectedly high number of responses to a consultation exercise.
However, they have now been slipped out in
Northern Ireland after just a few weeks of
consultation and are due to come into force in the province on Jan 1.
Critics yesterday said the regulations are
tougher than originally proposed because they
make harassment on the grounds of sexual
orientation illegal and not simply overt victimisation.
This means that if a homosexual person feels
their "dignity has been violated" or that they
have been subjected to a ''humiliating or offensive environment" they can sue.
The Lawyers' Christian Fellowship said the
consultation had not asked a question about
harassment and the decision to proceed was "undemocratic and misleading".
It added: "The potential for an aggrieved student
to sue his faith school – if they taught from the
Bible about the importance of marriage and that
promiscuity or sex outside marriage is wrong – is alarming," it said.
"He would simply need to argue that as a gay
student, this teaching put him in a 'hostile' or 'insulting' environment."
The LCF said a gay man who went into a Christian
bookshop could object on harassment grounds if
there were books or posters promoting traditional families and marriage.
The regulations state that ''a person subjects
another to harassment... where, on the ground of
sexual orientation, he engages in unwanted
conduct which has the purpose or effect of
violating his dignity; or creating an
intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment".
Faith groups have so far unsuccessfully pressed
ministers to grant an exemption for Churches and
religious organisations. Christian, Muslim and
Jewish leaders have all voiced concerns that
their priests may be obliged to bless same-sex unions.
The Roman Catholic Church says its nine adoption
and fostering agencies would be at risk of
closure if the Government tried to make them
place children in the care of gay couples.
Christian marriage preparation and guidance
agencies might have to cater for same-sex
couples. All secondary schools in Britain would
be compelled to promote homosexual sexual acts on
an equal footing to the conjugal love of married heterosexuals.
The Department for Communities and Local
Government, in charge of the policy in England
and Wales, has delayed implementation of the
regulations while it considers some 3,000
responses to the public consultation.
But in Northern Ireland, which is run from
Whitehall in the absence of a devolved
administration, the consultation closed only in
September and the new regulations were tabled just six weeks later.
Northern Ireland is increasingly being used a
test-bed for policies. Tories believe new
property taxes based on capital values, which
will come into force in the province next April,
will eventually be introduced in the rest of the UK.
By Philip Johnston, Home Affairs Editor 21/11/2006
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/11/21/ngay21.xml
bulldozed through parliament despite protests from Churches and other groups.
The Sexual Orientation Regulations, which the
Government appeared to have dropped a few weeks
ago, are being fast-tracked in Northern Ireland, using direct rule powers.
They have even be toughened up in what critics
believe is a dry run for a similar move in the rest of Britain next spring.
The legislation would prevent gays or lesbians
being discriminated against in the "provision of goods and services".
This could include being turned away from a hotel
or a shop but might also require schools to give
equal prominence in sex education classes to both
homosexual and heterosexual practices.
Faith groups are concerned that they will no
longer be able to put forward a strongly-held
belief that homosexuality is a sin. Churches have
said they also object to being forced into
letting same-sex couples adopt children in their care.
The UK-wide regulations were due to be voted on
in parliament last month but the Government put
them off for six months because of an
unexpectedly high number of responses to a consultation exercise.
However, they have now been slipped out in
Northern Ireland after just a few weeks of
consultation and are due to come into force in the province on Jan 1.
Critics yesterday said the regulations are
tougher than originally proposed because they
make harassment on the grounds of sexual
orientation illegal and not simply overt victimisation.
This means that if a homosexual person feels
their "dignity has been violated" or that they
have been subjected to a ''humiliating or offensive environment" they can sue.
The Lawyers' Christian Fellowship said the
consultation had not asked a question about
harassment and the decision to proceed was "undemocratic and misleading".
It added: "The potential for an aggrieved student
to sue his faith school – if they taught from the
Bible about the importance of marriage and that
promiscuity or sex outside marriage is wrong – is alarming," it said.
"He would simply need to argue that as a gay
student, this teaching put him in a 'hostile' or 'insulting' environment."
The LCF said a gay man who went into a Christian
bookshop could object on harassment grounds if
there were books or posters promoting traditional families and marriage.
The regulations state that ''a person subjects
another to harassment... where, on the ground of
sexual orientation, he engages in unwanted
conduct which has the purpose or effect of
violating his dignity; or creating an
intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment".
Faith groups have so far unsuccessfully pressed
ministers to grant an exemption for Churches and
religious organisations. Christian, Muslim and
Jewish leaders have all voiced concerns that
their priests may be obliged to bless same-sex unions.
The Roman Catholic Church says its nine adoption
and fostering agencies would be at risk of
closure if the Government tried to make them
place children in the care of gay couples.
Christian marriage preparation and guidance
agencies might have to cater for same-sex
couples. All secondary schools in Britain would
be compelled to promote homosexual sexual acts on
an equal footing to the conjugal love of married heterosexuals.
The Department for Communities and Local
Government, in charge of the policy in England
and Wales, has delayed implementation of the
regulations while it considers some 3,000
responses to the public consultation.
But in Northern Ireland, which is run from
Whitehall in the absence of a devolved
administration, the consultation closed only in
September and the new regulations were tabled just six weeks later.
Northern Ireland is increasingly being used a
test-bed for policies. Tories believe new
property taxes based on capital values, which
will come into force in the province next April,
will eventually be introduced in the rest of the UK.
By Philip Johnston, Home Affairs Editor 21/11/2006
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/11/21/ngay21.xml
