Christians oppose B&B refusal of gay couples

A majority of Christians are opposed to bed-and-breakfast owners refusing accommodation to gay couples, new research shows, writes Paul Wilkinson.

The YouGov poll found that more than half of Catholics and a similar number of Anglicans thought the proprietors should welcome same-sex couples. Thirty-five per cent of Catholics supported B&B owners’ right to refuse them. For Anglicans the figure was 42 per cent.

The survey of more than 4,000 people for the Westminster Faith Debates found 57 per cent of the broader public said it was wrong to refuse accommodation to gay couples. This majority increased, the younger the respondent.

The poll was timed to coincide with this week’s Supreme Court hearing of an appeal by Peter and Hazelmary Bull who in 2008 refused on religious grounds to let a double room to a homosexual couple at their B&B at the Chymorvah Hotel in Marazion, Cornwall. They were later ordered to pay damages.

The poll did show, however, that a majority – 49 per cent, compared to 40 per cent – thought it wrong that the Bulls were ordered to pay £3,600 damages.

Among under 24s, the figures opposing discrimination jumped to 81 per cent, while only 40 per cent of those aged 60 or more shared this view.

Half of the over-60s thought owners should be able to choose whom they rent to on grounds of sexuality.

Professor Linda Woodhead of Lancaster University, who helps organise the Westminster Faith Debates, said that while a majority opposed the Bulls being ordered to pay damages, “this does not translate into approval for B&B owners discriminating against people on the basis of their sexuality”.