UKIP leadership frontrunner caught trying to ‘cover up’ gay child abuse comments
A UKIP London Assembly Member attempted to cover up comments suggesting gay people were abused as children, after a report on PinkNews.
PinkNews broke the news yesterday that David Kurten, an elected member of the London Assembly and a candidate for UKIP leader, had made comments linking homosexuality to childhood sexual abuse.
Asked if he believes sexual orientation is “fixed at birth” in an online Q&A with UKIP website ‘Support 4 the Family’, Mr Kurten suggested that homosexuality is the result of childhood sexual abuse.
He said: “The latest scientific studies show that incidence of homosexuality in adults decreases with age, so it is unlikely to be fixed at birth. Study after study also shows that the incidence of homosexuality is much higher among people who have been sexually abused as children. This is an issue which needs to be addressed but is not because of political correctness.”
PinkNews can reveal that after our original story on Mr Kurten’s comments, the Q&A on the Support 4 the Family website has been doctored to try and conceal his original answers.
The website, which is serendipitously run by Mr Kurten’s campaign manager Alan Craig was edited without any disclosure to completely change Mr Kurten’s words.
The amended answer claims “there are many reasons for sexual orientation” and that “some studies have concluded that the incidence of homosexuality is much higher among people who have been sexually abused as children”.
Mr Kurten has since put out a statement in which he appears to deny making the initial comments in the first place.
He said: “[The PinkNews article] was in my opinion a hatchet job designed to cast me in the worst light possible for the consumption of the liberal metropolitan elite.”
“The most contentious point of the headline is the implication that I believe that homosexuality is caused by child abuse. This is not what I said, and it is not what I believe. I did not suggest at all that all homosexual people have been abused.
“What is true, however, Is that there is no evidence for a ‘gay gene’ – a specific set of codons in our DNA which pre-determine sexual orientation. It is also true that some studies have concluded that there is a higher incidence of childhood abuse among homosexual people, including Johnson and Shrier (1985), Tomeo (2001), Wells (2010) and Lehovat, Molina and Simoni (2012).”
However, Mr Kurten made no such distinction in his original answer.
PinkNews contacted Mr Kurten to clarify why the answers were secretly changed, but received no reply.
Mr Kurten, who is backed by mega-wealthy Leave.EU backer Arron Banks, was branded “not fit for office” by senior UKIP figures after the comments.
After UKIP’s former deputy chair Suzanne Evans condemned Mr Kurten’s homophobic comments, Banks branded her a “witch”.
Mr Banks wrote: “See Suzanne Evans up to her old tricks , malicious stuff from the person who helped Carswell & co destroy the party.”
Mr Banks then branded PinkNews “fake news”, before saying: “everybody has accepted homosexuality, it’s not an issue anymore. Doesn’t mean we need our kids persuaded that it’s a great lifestyle choice!”
In his statement, Mr Kurten hit back: “Without contacting me at all, some people, including another candidate for the leadership and another person who previously attempted to have me deselected as a candidate for the London Assembly, have either attacked me publically or signed an open letter calling for my exclusion from the contest, simply for expressing traditional views and mentioning the results of some studies.
“It is not surprising that people have entered UKIP who also support the agenda of cultural Marxism, as UKIP stands for freedom and liberty. It is now clear that there are certain entryists who wish to close down the ‘wrong opinions’ just as much as the mainstream media who we must to continue to fight for our freedom of speech.”
The candidate doubled down on his vow to fight for the “restoration” of marriage as between one man and one woman, which threatens to void the thousands of existing same-sex marriages in the UK.
He said: “My personal opinion is that marriage is between a man and a woman. This is the definition of marriage in the vast majority of countries, and my personal opinion is that the millennia old definition of marriage we had in Britain should not have been changed in 2013.
“This is an issue of conscience, but in the event that there were a free vote on it, I would vote to restore traditional marriage.”
Mr Kurten has been condemned by a string of UKIP figures.
Peter Whittle, UKIP’s only other member of the London Assembly, hit out at the comments.
Mr Whittle, who is openly gay, said: “This is so wrong on every level. Neither I, nor any of the gay friends and colleagues I have known over 35 years, were sexually abused.”
In a separate statement, the leaders of the LGBT* in UKIP group said: “LGBT* in UKIP have been made aware of the disgraceful, offensive, homophobic and transphobic comments published by PinkNews quoting David Kurten.
“We call for those who are vetting the leadership candidates to be made aware of these remarks and that they are taken into consideration whilst the panel determine the candidates application.
“Further to this, we call for immediate suspension pending full investigation with purpose to review such comments as a representative of the party, not only as an Education spokesperson but also a London Assembly member.”
Speaking to PinkNews, UKIP’s former Deputy Chair Suzanne Evans described Mr Kurten as “not fit for elected office” – despite him being one of the party’s few remaining elected figures.
Ms Evans told PinkNews: “David Kurten’s comments are utterly disgraceful.
“Sadly I am not surprised by them: Kurten has on numerous occasions shown himself to be vehemently opposed to homosexuality, yet as a protege of Nigel Farage, thrust forward onto the London Assembly, his obvious flaws have so far been ignored.
“In my opinion he is not fit for elected office nor leadership of a political party.”
The comments come days after Mr Kurten vowed to shift the party aggressively against transgender rights.
He told Buzzfeed that UKIP could take advantage of the Tories “[deciding] to start pushing gender queer theory on primary schools.”
He added: “People don’t want their children to be confused by this kind of thing.
“I will take UKIP in the direction of standing against the militant transgender activism that’s happening at the moment.”
Mr Kurten previously said the government should ban teaching about “non-reproductive sexual acts” under the age of consent, effectively banning discussion of homosexuality in the classroom.
He said: “We must protect our children from damaging and confusing fringe ideologies which sexualise children at an early age and confuse their natural development as boys and girls – both in primary, secondary and even pre-schools.
“No one would have thought 10 years ago that it would ever be considered politically incorrect to call children boys or girls, to call parents mothers or fathers, or if you say there are two biological sexes determined by your chromosomes rather than 40 or 50 or 60 different genders then this is on the way to being considered a hate crime.
“Of course it isn’t. It’s science.”
Three of the candidates in the leadership race – London Assembly member Peter Whittle, Scotland leader David Coburn, and anti-Islam activist Anne Marrie Waters – are openly gay, though not necessarily in support of LGBT rights.
Mr Whittle was considered the frontrunner in the race, though Mr Kurten has been bolstered by the backing of mega-wealthy donor Arron Banks.
The struggling party has churned its way through a string of leaders in the past two years – with the reigns passing between Nigel Farage, Suzanne Evans (whose acting leadership was revoked before she even took up the post), Nigel Farage, Diane James, Nigel Farage, Paul Nuttall and current interim leader Steve Crowther.
Another candidate in the leadership race famously claimed a gay donkey raped his horse.
Mr Kurten’s original Q&A answers are republished below:
1, For the sake of our children and the healthy nurture of future generations, should UKIP in due course campaign to re-establish the natural definition of marriage as the life-long union of one man with one woman?
I personally believe that marriage is between one man and one woman. If there were a free vote in Parliament I would vote to restore this definition of marriage.
2. As pledged in UKIP’s May 2015 manifesto, should the party extend the legal concept of ‘reasonable accommodation’ to give protection in law to those expressing traditional views about marriage in the workplace?
Yes. Reasonable accommodation should allow people to express support for traditional marriage without fear of penalty. Pharmacists should also be allowed to refrain from selling abortion pills; midwives and doctors should not have to perform abortions, and Catholic adoption agencies should be allowed to re-open and serve male/female married couples only.
3. Do you agree that parents and guardians should have the fundamental right to raise their children in their own way?
Yes. Parents are the primary educators of their children. The state should only intervene in cases of abuse, but not for politically incorrect opinions.
4. Should children at school be taught about the health risks of sexual promiscuity?
Yes. However, parents are primary educators and should have the right to decide whether to let their children attend ‘sex and relationship education’ lessons of any kind, and what age is appropriate to discuss these issues.
5. Should children at school be taught about the benefits of not having sex outside of marriage, and staying with the same partner for life?
Yes. However, parents are primary educators and should have the right to decide whether to let their children attend ‘sex and relationship education’ lessons of any kind, and what age is appropriate to discuss these issues.
6. Is our sexual orientation (gay or straight) fixed at birth or not?
The latest scientific studies show that incidence of homosexuality in adults decreases with age, so it is unlikely to be fixed at birth. Study after study also shows that the incidence of homosexuality is much higher among people who have been sexually abused as children. This is an issue which needs to be addressed but is not because of political correctness.
7. At what stage in their education should children be taught about sexual orientation?
pre-school
primary school
secondary school
further education
not at all
From 16 on a voluntary basis, but counseling involving parents should be offered on a one to one basis for children aged 13 – 16 who wish to discuss sexual orientation.
8. Is our gender fixed at birth or not?
Yes, gender is determined by chromosomes and anatomy. Judith Butler’s Genderqueer Theory is nonsense.
9. At what stage should children be taught about gender re-assignment?
(choices are the same as in question 7)
From 16 on a voluntary basis. It should certainly not even be considered in primary schools as it can confuse and harm children’s natural development as boys and girls.
10. Should parents have the right to withdraw their children from lessons at school which are about lifestyle, ethics, morals and relationships, and arrange for these subjects to be taught in a different social context (for example at church), or teach the children themselves in their own way?
Yes. Parents are primary educators, and the right to remove children from sex and relationships education (apart from scientific facts about reproduction and chromosomes) should be retained.
