Attorney general halts gay cake appeal hearing with late intervention

An appeal by the Christian-run bakery at the centre of a discrimination case over its refusal to bake a cake embellished with a pro-gay marriage slogan has been adjourned today following an intervention by the Attorney General.

The case was halted after a late intervention by Northern Ireland’s attorney general, John Larkin QC.

Larkin raised legal issues with the court regarding discrimination and equality legislation and has made a last minute request to make representation in the case about any potential conflict between Northern Ireland’s strict equality legislation and European human rights laws.

After a short hearing, the case has been rescheduled for 9 May.

The second hearing will involve arguments about whether or not the local attorney general can become involved in the case along with legal arguments on the compatibility of the regulations with European human rights law.

Speaking outside of the court today, Daniel McArthur, General Manager of Ashers Baking Company, said: “We were fully prepared for the hearing to go ahead and arrived this morning in full expectation it would do so however developments have taken place which are clearly out with our control due to the decision by the Attorney General to intervene. Clearly, our case raises matters of crucial importance if he has taken a decision to become involved.

We have every confidence in our legal team and the arguments which were to be put forward and we had also clearly placed our trust, as always, in God.”

The family have the backing of The Christian Institute, which is funding their legal defence costs.

Last year Asher’s Bakery in Belfast was ordered to pay a £500 fine for refusing to make the cake for gay activists.

A Belfast court found that a customer had been discriminated against on the grounds of his sexual orientation. The case was taken to court with the backing of the Northern Ireland Equality Commission. The commission paid almost £39,000 in legal fees.

The McArthur family who run Ashers decided “after much careful and prayerful consideration” to appeal.

Peter Tatchell said this week that he was wrong to support the original discrimination case against Ashers and that the guilty verdict had set a worrying precedent for equality rights.

“Much as I wish to defend the gay community, I also want to defend freedom of conscience, expression and religion,” the prominent gay rights activist wrote in The Guardian. “In my view, it is an infringement of freedom to require businesses to aid the promotion of ideas to which they conscientiously object. Discrimination against people should be unlawful, but not against ideas.”