Watch: Young Michael Gove reports on gay love at London Pride
The internet has become amused by a clip of a fresh-faced Michael Gove reporting on homosexuals at a Pride parade.
BBC Archive today re-shared a clip of the Tory Secretary of State for Justice long before he found his way into Parliament, back when he was working as a BBC reporter.
The clip from 1993 shows a youthful Mr Gove reporting on the London Gay Pride March.
He observes: “Many of the men on this march will have broken the law, repeatedly and persistently, by falling in love as teenagers.
“Last year, hopes were raised that the age of consent for homosexuality and heterosexuality would be equalised, but many now fear the government won’t make a move.
“So, what are the chances of the change in the law that makes young gay love a sex crime?”
Indeed, the Conservative John Major government of the time never managed to equalise the age of consent – it took until 2003, when Tony Blair’s government passed the Sexual Offences Act.
Mr Gove was a strong supporter of same-sex marriage during its passage through Parliament.
Michael Gove used to be a BBC reporter you know. Here he is at a gay rights march in 1993 for On The Record https://t.co/RrqiIenHn9
— BBC Archive (@BBCArchive) October 6, 2015
The then-Education Secretary said in 2013: “It’s wrong to say that because of how you love and who you love, you are not entitled to the same rights as others. It’s wrong because inequality is wrong.
“Marriage is not undermined by extending it to gay people – it is reinforced by including everyone equally.”
“If I thought any legislation, however well-intentioned, would make life more difficult for great teachers and great schools I wouldn’t support it. I have complete confidence in the protection our law offers freedom of conscience and speech.”
Click here to watch the full segment.
