Ken Livingstone: Tories were ‘riddled with gays’by Stephen Grayfor PinkNews.co.uk 8 February 2012, 5:58pmTweet
Ken Livingston said out gay Labour MPs got jobs "immediately" under Blair and it was "wonderful"
In an interview with the New Statesman, Ken Livingstone has said the Conservative party was “riddled” with homosexuality.The Labour London mayoral candidate told the publication he condemned “hypocrisy, like some Tory MP denouncing homosexuality while they are indulging in it”.He added: “Well, the Labour [MPs] have all come out . . . As soon as Blair got in, if you came out as lesbian or gay you immediately got a job. It was wonderful . . . you just knew the Tory party was riddled with it like everywhere else is.”Gay Tory MP Alan Duncan said: “Many of us have managed to take this issue out of politics. It’s inexcusable for him to try to reintroduce it.” But a spokesman for Mr Livingstone, who was London’s mayor from 2000 to 2008, told the Evening Standard: “Ken is clearly saying the advance of lesbian and gay people into politics is unequivocally a good thing. He has fought for equality for gay and lesbian people throughout his life, and the fact they are represented in all major political parties is a sign of the progress that has been made.”In 2006, at the launch of an anti-homophobic bullying campaign spearheaded by the gay rights charity Stonewall, Livinstone told PinkNews.co.uk: “In my school of two thousand boys, roughly a third, maybe a half of them, whilst never thinking of themselves as gay, engaged in sexual acts with other boys. We had no idea that what we were doing was anything other than ‘naughty’ and something that our teachers frowned upon.”He added: “It was mainly driven by the fact that we weren’t having sex. I grew up in a world where the average man didn’t lose his virginity until he was 19 and the average woman until they were 21. Many not until the night of their marriage, only after a whole day of eating and drinking, when you’re hardly going to get the best results! My generation has been wholly envious of the generations that followed in relation to sex.”Mr Livingstone was criticised last year for having earned money from anti-gay Iran which led to Tory calls for him to be banned from Pride.In 2004, Mr Livingstone invited Islamic cleric Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi to City Hall. Dr Qawardi, who is banned from entering the US, has argued in the past that gays should be put to death and has also supported female genital mutilation and suicide bombings in Israel. Some of his statements have been filmed, while others were published as quotes on his personal website.But in 2001, Mr Livingstone introduced the first gay relationships register, four years ahead of the introduction of civil partnerships. In 2010, he published an LGBT election manifesto for his campaign this year, saying he would appoint an LGBT advisory board and hold an annual Pride reception, reintroducing measures then removed by Boris Johnson.He told the current issue of the New Statesman: “It is very hard to find anything in Boris’s career that he’s serious about. He just loves life too much to really succeed as a politician.”Discuss this story: 66 commentsGet the daily Pink News email newsletter Join!Related articles1 July 2011Tory gay group says Ken Livingstone should be banned from Pride6230 June 2011Comment: Ken Livingstone claims Boris Johnson's City Hall is 'passive' on gay rights10024 September 2010Ken Livingstone backed by Labour to become London mayor in 20121316 September 2010Ken Livingstone promises new gay rights measures if elected London mayor92 June 2010Ken Livingstone accuses Boris Johnson of 'snubbing' gay Londoners over Pride24About the author
Washington House of Representatives votes for gay marriageby James Parkfor PinkNews.co.uk 8 February 2012, 11:48pmTweet
Both houses of Washington's Congress have approved gay marriage
Washington state’s House of Representatives has passed a bill to introduce gay marriage by 55 votes to 43. The state’s senate has already approved the measure which is also supported by the state governor.The law would take effect 90 days after the governor Christine Gregoire signs the bill. But opponents have vowed to fight gay marriage with a ballot measure, similar to California’s Proposition 8 that would give voters the opportunity to overturn pro-gay legislation.Yesterday, the US 9th District Court of Appeals found that Proposition 8 broke the United States constitution. Although the court has jurisdiction over a number of states, including Washington, its decision was limited to California.Before the state legislature’s session began this year, Governor Gregoire announced her support for the move at the capital, Olympia.She told a press conference: “It is time in Washington state for marriage equality. It’s the right thing to do.”“Our gay and lesbian families face the same hurdles as heterosexual families: making ends meet, choosing what school to send their kids to, finding someone to grow old with, standing in front of friends and family and making a lifetime commitment.“For all couples, a state marriage license is very important. It gives them the right to enter into a marriage contract in which their legal interests, and those of their children if any, are protected by well-established civil law.”Last week, she posted a video message to YouTube where she said: “As governor, I believe the state of Washington cannot be in the business of discrimination. As an American, a wife and mother, marriage equality is fair, just, and right. And it is time.”Coffee giant Starbucks has been among multi-nationals based in Washington state to back the draft legislation.A statement from the Seattle-based hot drink titan says it was “proud” to join other Washington-based employers like Microsoft and Nike as support for equal marriage brews in the state.Discuss this story: 4 commentsAdd Pink News to your Facebook news feedRelated articles2 February 2012Video: Washington state governor: 'States can't be in the business of discrimination'112 February 2012Washington state senate approves equal marriage1224 January 2012Washington Senate has votes for marriage equality105 January 2012Washington state Governor says it is "time for marriage equality"204 January 2012Governor of Washington state "to support marriage equality" today1131 March 2011Washington state to recognise out-of-state gay marriages3Related topics
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