Wind farm boss steps down after saying Stephen Gately ‘had it coming’
A renewable energy company boss has resigned, after posting a series of homophobic comments on social media.
It was reported last week that Matt Braund, the project development manager of ABO Wind UK, wrote that Boyzone Stephen Gately “had it coming” when he died from a heart condition.
He added that gay sportsmen were “homsexual [sic] retarded”, and that lesbians should not look like men.
In September 2013, he wrote: “Just seen a couple of island lesbians … women of that certain disposition should understand that if you hate men so much, you should stop trying to look like them!”
He later admitted: “I am aware of the comments that have been attributed to me on my Facebook page. These comments are accurate and they were posted by me.
“However, they were not intended for public consumption and they were not posted to purposely offend anyone. I apologise that some of the language used and the comments made are inappropriate.”
Following the apology, ABO Wind this week confirmed that Mr Braund has resigned from his role.
A letter from the company said: “ABO Wind was very surprised and disappointed to learn that one of our employees had made such unacceptable comments on Facebook.
“We expect our employees to treat all members of the community with respect and tolerance. We cannot condone the comments made by Matt Braund.
“We believe that members of the LGBT community deserve the same respect as the rest of the community. The same also applies to members of the disabled community.
“After reviewing the matter with Matt Braund he has decided to resign his position. We respect his decision to stand down and believe this to be in the best interests of all parties.”
