Cameron refuses to rule out coalition with homophobic DUP
By Ben Kelly
David Cameron has refused to rule out a coalition with Northern Ireland’s DUP, despite their homophobic views, though he has said he “profoundly disagrees” with them on LGBT rights.
Speaking at a Q&A with young voters hosted by BBC Radio 1’s Newsbeat, the Prime Minister was questioned by Mary Hassan from Derry, who asked him to rule out a coalition with the party because of their LGBT views.
Mr Cameron said, “I totally disagree with the DUP and they will never change my mind about these views, which I hold very strongly.” He went on to say, “There is nothing I would do to change the approach that I’ve taken to the equality for gay and lesbian people in Great Britain.”
When pushed repeatedly on whether or not he would enter a coalition with the party, he insisted, “I don’t want a coalition with anybody”, reiterating that he was aiming for a majority, and that no one could predict the outcome of the election on May 7th.
The exchange has been widely discussed on Twitter, namely by commentator Owen Jones, who also called for the Prime Minister to rule out such a coalition.
The Democratic Unionist Party haven’t been as involved in public discourse as other regional parties like the SNP and Plaid Cymru, but they do have 8 MPs at Westminster, and could be crucial in holding the balance of power in the very likely event of a hung parliament.
Senior party figures have, in recent years, called gay relationships “obnoxious” and “repulsive”, said being gay was worse than child abuse, and blamed gay pride for causing Hurricane Katrina. The party has blocked the introduction of same sex marriage in Northern Ireland three times since it was introduced in England, Wales and Scotland, and their manifesto – released earlier this week – made no mention of LGBT rights.
You can listen back to Cameron’s entire Q&A on the BBC Radio 1 website.