A Christian town councillor has quit the Conservative Party over the Government’s proposals to redefine marriage.
Henley councillor David Silvester said that the push for same-sex ‘marriages’ had caused him to deflect to the UK Independence Party.
He said that while he disagreed with a number of Coalition policies, the Prime Minister’s plan to fast-track the legislation was “the straw that broke the camel’s back.”
Nuneaton
Two councilors left the Nuneaton Conservative Party over the same issue last week, arguing that the government’s proposals failed to protect churches from legal challenges.
Nick and Matt Grant, who are brothers, said: “The government claims to be taking steps to protect faith groups, but cannot prevent legal action being taken against churches or promise to prevent a weakening of any protections in the future.”
Hexham
A senior town councillor in Hexham also resigned after MPs voted 400 to 175 in favour of the Government’s Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill during its second reading earlier this month.
Matty Donnelly (66) who is a highly respected figure in his town and a committed Christian said: “I cannot affiliate myself with this. I cannot go along with David Cameron and the rest of them.
“I was absolutely astounded at the result of the vote on Tuesday and decided to resign from the Conservative party on the spur.”
He added: “I have tendered my resignation to the party branch and will return as an Independent.
“I have mixed feelings about doing this but I have never been a political person as such. I put people before politics.”
Only half of Conservative MPs who voted on the Bill voted against it, causing embarrassment for the Prime Minister who had to rely on the votes of Labour and the Liberal Democrats to see it pass.
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