New Zealand: Conservatives select candidate who claimed same-sex marriage leads to crime
The Conservative Party of New Zealand has selected a candidate who claimed that same-sex marriage will lead to an increase in all crime.
Garth McVicar, the founder of the Sensible Sentencing Trust, has announced he will stand as a Conservative candidate in Napier.
McVicar has refused to back away from his previous claims, which he made while the country’s same-sex marriage bill was being debated.
He said: “The marriage amendment bill will not benefit society at all and will ultimately have detrimental effect on crime at all levels.
“Furthermore, the bill represents a further decay and erosion of the traditional family that society has been founded on.”
The party said in a statement: “Not afraid to take on the system, Garth brings the common sense, decency, and family values that mark him out as a great Conservative Party candidate for the people of Napier.”
Defending his comments, McVicar had said: “my brother’s a gay [and] a lot of my friends are. That’s absolutely fine.”
The Conservative Party, which was formed in 2011, does not yet have any members in the House of Representatives, but has two members on the Auckland Local Board.
New Zealand legalised same-sex marriage in April last year, with 77 members voting in favour and 44 against.
