Nigel Farage brands same-sex marriage law ‘wrong’: ‘I didn’t support it’

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has labeled the legislation that led to equal marriage in the UK “wrong”.

The Clacton MP, who has been criticised for chasing Donald Trump’s coat tails rather than working in his constituency, made the comments on LBC when taking calls on various issues alongside presenter Nick Ferrari.

When asked about same-sex marriage, which was made law in 2013 before the first ceremonies were performed in 2014, he said: “It is a settled issue. I didn’t support it. I thought it was wrong to introduce it to the public without even putting it in a manifesto.

“I was very surprised that David Cameron did that. I thought the civil partnership arrangement that we had was actually working equitably and fairly.

“So I thought the work that was done was wrong, but look, we have moved on.”

This echos comments Farage back back in 2014 when he expressed disapproval of equal unions.

He said at the time: ”I do not support same-sex marriages… while we’re under the auspices of the European Court of Human Rights.

“Come out of Europe, and we can have a sensible debate about same-sex marriages and how we conduct it.”

He also claimed at the time:”We are opening up a very big can of worms here, with many very big risks.

“I think the Church of England is going to go through a very difficult and miserable time as it is dragged through the courts of Strasbourg.

“I can’t prejudge what will happen there, but possibly forced to conduct gay marriages in those churches against the will of vast majority of churchgoers.”

Farage has made other choice comments about the LGBTQ+ community over the years, beyond the topic of marriage.

In 2013, back when he was leader of UKIP, Farage said he would not expel members for voicing “old-fashioned” views about homosexuality, including those who describe it as “disgusting”.

Later, in 2019, he said people living with HIV should not be able to enter the UK, claiming that the country is “incapable” of treating people with the virus because of immigration.

He also praised Margaret Thatcher’s period as prime minister as a time of “real advancement for gay people in society”, claiming gays and lesbians “were not discriminated against the way they had been by nearly every prime minister before”.

When reminded of the abhorrent law that was Section 28, implemented by Thatcher’s government, Farage said that “was done because she feared some of the very, very extreme left-wing elements within the teaching union”.

Farage’s far-right party Reform UK – which is currently polling well in the UK – takes aim in its policy pledge, entitled “Our contract with you“, at immigration, multiculturalism and “divisive, ‘woke’ ideology”, with Reform stating “transgender indoctrination is causing irreversible harm to children”.