LONDON, ENGLAND - The British High Court has allowed a group of Christian organisations to challenge new gay rights legislation. Seven groups launched the suit after it became apparent that the laws would ban discrimination in the provision of goods and services to homosexuals.Justice Deeny granted leave to apply for a judicial review. The case will come before him later this week.
The groups which launched the legal action have claimed the consultation process into it was flawed. Lawyer David Scoffield, representing the organisations, said the eight-week consultation process was too short and should not have been conducted during the summer months, BBC News Online reported Tuesday.
Scoffield argued it was improper for the office of the first minister and deputy first minister to make legislation which 'discriminates on the grounds of religious belief'. Similar regulations proposed in England and Wales extended the consultation process six months as 'further time was needed to consider complex issues,' he said.
Bernard McCloskey, acting on behalf of the office of the first minister and deputy first minister, said the applicants needed to establish whether there was a 'legitimate expectation for consultation' regarding the proposed regulations. He added there was no legal obligation to consult such Christian organisations, branding their collective assertion as 'merely threadbare'.
from Monsters And Critics
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