David Lammy cuts tie with equal marriage opponents who funded interns
Labour MP for Tottenham David Lammy has cut ties with the Christian Action Research and Education which co-launched the anti-marriage equality Coalition for Marriage petition and supported a ‘gay cure’ conference.
The group paid an intern roughly £100 a week from January 2011 to work in Lammy’s office, The Haringey Independent reports.
Mr Lammy told the Haringey Independent: “My record on gay rights stands for itself and I’ll be voting in favour of the gay marriage bill.
“I’ve worked with CARE in the past on betting shops – which is an issue that still blights Tottenham – and I accepted an intern to help in my office which is the busiest in the country.
“But I had no idea that they held these views and my position now is that I won’t be taking another intern because I can’t agree with their extreme views.”
Lammy has been the MP for Tottenham since 2000 and hosted the launch of London’s gay festival GFest, at the Houses of Parliament in 2009.
According to the investigation by the Haringey Independent, CARE also still pays £5,500 for an intern to work in David Burrowes’ office.
CARE and Burrowes denied it is a lobby group and said it has no influence on policy.
David Burrowes has said he faced death threats for his opposition to equal marriage.
In 2008, the Independent reported that CARE had been funding Parliamentary researchers on new laws on embryo research.
