Whew. That's a relief -- but only for a while.Remember back in November I alerted you to a move by the British government (pressured by the EU) to drop legal protection for churches and religious organizations who refuse to hire homosexuals. The government planned to eliminate the conscience exemptions that had been part of the Equality Bill by getting approval in the House of Commons (which it did easily) and then in the House of Lords.
And that's where the government ran into Baroness Detta O'Cathain. Lady O'Cathain, already a lightning rod to the liberal press because of her social conservatism, introduced an amendment which would keep the religious exemptions in place. The amendment held 216 to 178.
However, the government was insistent and came back again. Such is the passion for intolerance when it comes to homosexual activism. Two further votes were forced as the government knowingly distorted their intentions and otherwise pressured the Lords. By the final vote, the margin had been ground down to a mere 5 votes.
Expect that this fight to protect religiously-based conscience (reflecting, it should be added, the moral consensus of millenia) is a long way from being over.
