Project Fear becomes Project Smear: What Andrea Leadsom really thinks about gay marriage

As Remain's Project Fear becomes Project Smear and the 'remainstream media' lap it up, let us consider what Tory leadership contender, Andrea Leadsom really thinks about marriage equality (emphasis added by me).

 “I believe the love of same-sex couples is as every bit as valuable that of opposite sex couples – absolutely committed to that. But nevertheless, my own view actually, is that marriage in the biblical sense is very clearly from the many many Christians who wrote to me on this subject – in their opinion – can only be between a man and a woman."

When asked if she agreed with those writing to her to tell her that marriage can only be between a man and a woman, Ms Leadsom responded: “No I don’t actually agree with them. I don’t agree with them to be specific."

Ms Leadsom added that she would have prefered the legislation to have included civil partnerships for both heterosexual and gay couples and for "marriage [in the Church] to have a remained a Christian service for men and women who wanted to commit in the eyes of God." She went on to explicitly state that homosexual and heterosexual couples are "exactly" equally worthy of marriage. 

To explain her position further, Ms Leadsom went on to say that the legislation caused a "very clear hurt ... to many Christians who felt that marriage in the Church could only be between a man a woman." She explained that her issue was with the legislation (not the principle) because of "the potential compulsion for the Church of England" and that she does "not think that the Anglican Church should be forced down a route" it is not happy with. On that basis she voted to abstain by voting in favour of marriage equality but voting against the specific legislation. To clarify still further she added, "But I absolutely support gay marriage."

It is clear what Andrea Leadsom's position is; support for gay marriage while respecting the rights of the religious to set their own direction within their own Churches.

It is truly shameful that Ms Leadsom's Remain opponents in the left-wing media would seek to unnecessarily and disingenuously build up the fears of the LGBT community just to smear a Tory leadership candidate or to increase the number of clicks on their increasingly hysterical social media posts. As for Conservative rival, Theresa May, it ought to be made clear to her camp that encouraging these smears will only do damage to the long term reputation of the Conservative Party as a whole.

 When remainers discovered on the 23rd June that merely shouting "racist" at opponents to the EU did not help them win the referendum, you might be forgiven for thinking that they could have learned a valuable lesson. Apparently not. Instead, they've opted to merely attempt a different bogus accusation in the hope that, once again, creating division and fear of prejudice will work better this time. Andrea Leadsom supports gay marriage "absolutely" and there is not so much as a thread of truth to the homophobia smear campaign. 

Boris Johnson, Andrea Leadsom, and Michael Gove: A triumvirate for our times

A plea to Conservatives.

Our country is facing its greatest challenge since the mid-20^th century and it has no leadership. It doesn’t know where it is headed and its people are divided. That this was a choice taken against the will of the establishment is a testament to the bravery of the British public. That we won’t panic but are resolved to press forward is a testament to our strength of character. Yet our collective will is still contingent on purpose, momentum and unity and right now we’re depleting all three. What we need now is for those good people in a position to provide leadership to prioritise the good of the country and its people before all else. What we do not need is a drawn out battle between self-interested personalities who have been waiting in the wings to seize upon an opportunity such as this for their own aggrandisement. Such people not only fail to provide coherent direction, for they usually lack vision, but they put up roadblocks and create division. Within the Conservative parliamentary party there are both sorts and a range in between. Usually, it can afford a few mistakes; even a decade in the wilderness can be beneficial. But now we stand at one of the most profound junctures in British history, where decisions taken now will shape the world for generations. We can no longer afford the risk of allowing opportunists the chance to usurp this reformation for their benefit or for the agenda of the old guard.

On the 23^rd June, despite the weight of the establishment, including government, the BBC, and the EU, as well as all those well regarded institutions who have received our money via the EU, the public voted for the strength of argument and to put hope before fear, bullying and control. It is essential that our country is taken forward by those who have been the representatives of this new direction and who our public can trust will carry out their demand. The fight for the referendum may be over, but the fight for the nation’s soul and freedom is not. I would thus urge liberty’s champions to unite once more and to lead by example. I believe that is vital for this country’s future, for those of you who want to see the job done, to get behind the candidate who has the best mix of qualities for the premiership at this critical time. That candidate, by a country mile, is Boris Johnson. Yet even Boris is not an island (at least not yet). For the country to regain its sense of security and purpose, Boris needs to be first among equals as a part of a team dedicated to delivering the vest best outcome possible in line with our clearly expressed national wish. I would propose, therefore, that we place our trust in Michael Gove to be our representative to the world as Foreign Secretary where he will be able to continue winning in our national interest. In the Treasury, in charge of our nation’s finances, the country deserves someone who has the experience and level headedness needed to keep this ship afloat. That person is the enormously capable Andrea Leadsom. Andrea is of course, perfectly entitled to run for leadership and there is no doubt that she would do very well, but she would maximise her positive impact on the country by joining a unified ticket as prospective Chancellor of the Exchequer. Together, this triumvirate would have the necessary and sufficient respect of the parliamentary party, the overwhelming support of the membership, and the confidence of the voting public. The decision not to adopt this strategy would take the Vote Leave’s victory and subject it to yet another roll of the dice.

Boris Johnson (flanked by Andrea Leadsom and Michael Gove) is the best chance this country has of avoiding rule by the old guard, now in the guise of Theresa May. While Theresa May is a capable politician and has the support of a large portion of the parliamentary party, particularly those who backed Stronger In, she lacks the respect of huge sections of the membership and were she to take the keys to Number 10, it would be taken as a betrayal by those who want their sovereignty back. Ironically, given her probable motivations, she has damaged her credibility during the referendum campaign. Coming out for Remain clearly makes her unsuited to deliver on Brexit, but worse than that, her decision to come out for Remain and then sit on the side lines demonstrated a clear preference to put her career goals before her beliefs at such a crucial moment. Her reputation has been tarnished by opportunism and she cannot maintain the confidence of the people, let alone the 17.4 million who voted leave. At a time when we need someone who can bring the country together behind a common cause, in Theresa May, we have someone whose idea of strength is to wheel out tired authoritarian rhetoric whenever she feels insecure. Not only does that alienate huge and increasing numbers of Conservative voters, but it entirely loses the middle ground. By being untrusted on the EU, untrusted on her priorities, and poor in her liberal credentials, Theresa May is who we should elect if we want to further alienate the political class from the vast majority of society. All it would take is for Labour to replace Jeremy Corbyn with someone vaguely electable and our newly independent nation’s future would be shaped by Labour and its eternal dogmas. For the sake of the country, I implore you to not take that risk. Fight side by side once more.

Why Boris? Simple. While he may struggle to carry the parliamentary party on his own, he is far more loved within the party as a whole. In fact, he’s one of the most popular politicians of our time. So much so that he managed to win London, a major Labour stronghold, twice, largely on his own merit. As Mayor of London, Boris gained critical experience as a champion for London, something London needs now more than ever and so its interests carried forward to Number 10 would be vital to our prosperity. That experience sets Boris up as one of the best possible champions of the UK too. He understands how to break down partisan barriers which is something the UK needs as it heals from the referendum. The standing ovations he was given after his speeches during the Vote Leave campaign were not merely from Conservative voters but from Liberal and Labour voters alike. Boris has the right mix of fiscal conservatism and social liberalism to prevent the alienation of the middle ground. He embodies the spirit of freedom that voters have expressed their desire for and brings with that more passion than any of MP knows how to display.

Andrea Leadsom and Michael Gove bring with them not only the right ideas and a commitment to an independent UK but the articulation and clear headedness to win their case and help others understand it, as they both did during the campaign. Both are strong leaders and would no doubt do well in the top job in their own right and that is why their support for Boris would create such a powerful force, but now is the time for a united front. Loss of the premiership to the remainers and opportunists, or even to a Labour Party after the overthrow of Corbyn, would be a loss of the future of the UK for the people of this great country. We cannot afford any messing around. Do not waste time negotiating the ins and outs of future careers, get the basics locked down and drive forward.

Boris, offer Gove and Leadsom these top cabinet positions in writing, give them all the assurances they need, make clear that you’re on the same side and that loyalty will go both ways. Do not dither or back track. Once the team is together, find others. Convince Liam Fox to come on board, for example. History will remember each of you as the team who saved and defended Britain or, if personal ambition gets in the way, those who lost control of our future so close to victory. Those who put other priorities first by backing Theresa May or Stephen Crabb (a man whose leadership would be untenable by his insulting alienation of the gay community) would be making the Conservative Party unelectable and many of them would be putting themselves out of a job in 2020, if not sooner.

None of this will be anything that hasn’t been said already and there’s no compulsion to listen to anything I have to add. I’m merely an ordinary voter from London, struggling to find a job; what would I know about the world? Feel free to ignore me. But don’t ignore the fact that the public have endorsed this team once already.

The EU Democracy Fantasy

By far the most lunatic of fabrications I keep seeing repeated about the EU is the notion that it is democratic. Not only is its democratic merit close to nil, it's positively anti-democratic. Unlike an MP, most MEPs cannot be kicked out. That would be terrible enough but it's dramatically overshadowed by the fact that it's both the only somewhat democratic element to the EU and that it's not where power is held and thus not where accountability is most needed. The bogus comparison with the House of Lords makes no sense for that reason. Imagine if the House of Lords was elected through a system whereby you couldn't remove a large portion of them and you had no say over the rest of the state whatsoever. Would that still seem acceptable to you?

The description of the Council as democratic because its members were elected to entirely different entities is beyond ludicrous. You still cannot vote them out.

The idea that the setup of the EU is no worse than our Civil Service is backward. The Civil Service is there to carry out the policies of democratically elected governments. The EU's unelected bureaucrats are at the top of their food chain, not answerable to democratic accountability.

The claim that our lack of say as British people is no different from our lack of say as individual constituents within the UK is also nonsense. Our voice may be 1 in 64 million nationally, but we make our decisions for the most part on our self-interest in a national context. What makes Britain prosper makes the vast majority of us prosper (Yes, even Scotland). When we weaken our voice to 1 in 742 million in the EU, it's not merely less significant in quantity, it's less significant in quality because the vast majority are not voting on the basis of what they believe is right for the society and jurisdiction we live in. A one size fits all policy in the interests of Eastern Europe or Southern Europe is not likely to have our interests factored into it. Our voice as individuals over our own society's laws becomes obliterated. That we in return get to interfere in the societies of others is no consolation.

Our government has very little influence over the direction the EU is taking. We as an electorate are so far removed from it as to have none whatsoever. Power does not depend on voters and so no manifestos are ever put to them. With no manifestos there are no mandates for policies. With no mandates there's no real legitimacy save for the fact that we may well vote in a referendum once in our lifetimes to give up on democracy in favour of the EU. Even that is a dubious proposition. Of all the similar referendums on the EU held in other member states, the results of most have been simply ignored. On top of which, the EU actively agitates against a level playing field in the control of information, pumping money into its British mouthpiece the BBC and campaigns like Hacked Off, dedicated to state control of the press.

Under this undemocratic arrangement we have around half of our laws (see the House of Commons Library research) coming from an unaccountable EU. We have an activist European Court of Justice increasing its jurisdiction over areas it was not created for and ignoring national opt-outs. We have a huge customs union, raising the cost of living with higher than necessary prices, subsidies to inefficient industries which only serve to make them even less efficient and while getting in the way of focussing on our comparative advantage, and tariffs which cripple developing world markets, industries and people. We have massive corruption, corporatism, banking giants like Goldman Sachs cooking the books of irresponsible nations, forced bailouts of those nations and mass youth unemployment across the continent. And perhaps most worryingly, we're on a path of a rapidly increasing rate of centralisation, deliberate removal of national sovereignty and state building. With the inevitable and planned development of an EU army designed to rival NATO under German command, proposed removal of German military restrictions on using military force on domestic soil and the absence of democratic oversight, our liberty as EU citizens is contingent on no more than wishful thinking. We are left with the hope that our rulers are benevolent. Yet, as anyone who has bothered to look can tell you, massive centralisation of power without democratic accountability never goes well for those at the bottom. It breeds disorder and disorder is usually followed by more centralisation. The 23rd June is our very last chance to peacefully restore the sovereignty of the people without the chaos the EU is saving up for us.

Vote for democracy.

Vote for Britain.

Vote Leave.