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UK politician says he felt forced into saying gay sex wasn't a sin

MP Tim Farron said he felt foolish and wrong for saying gay sex isn't a sin.

Former Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron, who has said he regrets saying that gay sex is not a sin.

Source: Andrew Matthews/PA Wire

In today's episode of "ok hon", Former Liberal Democrat leader of the U.K., Tim Farron, has walked back his earlier claims where he said he believed gay sex wasn't a sin.

The MP apparently said he was pressured into lying to the public about his views on homosexuality during the general election of 2017.
During the campaign, Farron was dogged with questions about his faith and beliefs, which he routinely refused to answer. Finally, in in April of last year, Farron said he didn't "want to get into a series of questions unpicking the theology of the Bible" but acknowledged his opinions on the matter had become a focus of the election.

Stating he did not believe gay sex was a sin, Farron went on to say, "I take the view though that as a political leader, my job is not to pontificate on theological matters," before trying to steer the conversation toward healthcare and Brexit.

After the election Farron , saying he felt "torn between living as a faithful Christian and serving as a political leader".

"At the start of this election," Farron said in a speech to party staff, "I found myself under scrutiny again - asked about matters to do with my faith. I felt guilty that this focus was distracting attention from our campaign, obscuring our message."

Now it appears the MP is walking back his comments from April. Speaking on the UK's this week, Farron said he had been "foolish and wrong". 

"There was a sense that I felt I've got to get this off my table... The issue is here's a general election, a great opportunity for the Liberal Democrats... and all they wanted to do was talk about my -- you know -- Christian beliefs and what it meant."

"I would say foolishly and wrongly I attempted to push it away by giving an answer that frankly was not right."

After Farron's comments surfaced the current leader of the Liberal Democrats, Sir Vince Cable, made it clear the MP's views didn't reflect that of the broader party.

"[Liberal Democrats] have a long and proud record of fighting for LGBT+ rights,' Cable tweeted on Wednesday, "I will continue to champion rights and dignity".

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3 min read
Published 11 January 2018 4:05pm
By Mathew Whitehead


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