Presenter leaves BBC radio show after ‘controversially’ calling anti-LGBT group bigots
A radio presenter has left his BBC breakfast show – after he was forced to apologise for labellingĀ an anti-LGBT groupĀ Christian “bigots”.
AĀ controversy emerged lastĀ week on Iain Lee’sĀ BBC Three Counties Radio breakfast show, when Lee interviewed Libby Powell of Christian Concern and the Christian Legal Centre.
Christian Concern isĀ an extreme Christian group which isĀ strongly committed to opposing LGBT rights, speaking against equality on issues fromĀ same-sex parenting to anti-bullying campaigns, and opposing the decriminalisation of homosexuality globally.
Things turned fiery on-air between the pair while discussing the case ofĀ a prison gardenerĀ who saysĀ he was ‘persecuted’Ā at work,Ā after getting a warning for telling inmates that homosexuals must repent their sexuality to please God.
When Powell insisted homosexuality is a sin, Lee asked: “Do you support bigotry?”
Powell insisted that the case isn’t one of bigotry, but Lee continued: “Homophobia is bigotry. Do you support bigotry?”
Later in the interview, whenĀ Powell defended her views by reciting anti-LGBT church teachings, Lee hit back: “You’ve chosen not to question it, because you’re a bigot.”
However, after the anti-LGBT Christian group encouraged its supporters to complain en masseĀ about the interview, the BBC issued an apology, saying thatĀ the interview wasĀ “at several points inappropriate”.
This weekend, the radio star confirmed that he has departed hisĀ breakfastĀ show, and will not be returning.
The BBC confirmed: “Iain Lee will no longer be presenting his shows on the station but we want to take this opportunity to thank him and wish him well for the future.”
Lee addedĀ on Twitter:Ā “Thanks everyone. I’ve enjoyed every second of it. See you sometime in the future. X”
Christian Concern has previouslyĀ claimed thatĀ anti-bullying campaigns areĀ playing into the hands of a gay āTrojan Horseā attempting to promote gay sex to children.
The group often exhibits objectively bigoted views, claiming Stonewall is an āideological propaganda machineā attacking families.
Anti-LGBT CEO Andrea Williams, whoĀ has had involvement with ‘gay cure’ events in the pastĀ – also affirms that gay couples are “selfish” for having children.
The group has also backed laws criminalising gay sex in other countries. Speaking at a conference in Jamaica in support of the country’s buggery law, Williams citedĀ Tom Daley in claiming that homosexualityĀ can be ācausedā by a “lack of the fatherā and āsometimes a level of abuse”.
