Nigel Farage under fire for 'vile homophobia' after straight couples claim

Nigel Farage is under fire for "vile homophobia" for claiming straight couples are more likely to have "stable relationships".

The Reform UK leader was yesterday challenged over comments from MP Danny Kruger, who was unveiled as the latest Tory to defect to his party yesterday.

Mr Kruger - who is the son of Great British Bake Off judge Prue Leith - told a right-wing conference in 2023 that marriages between men and women were "the only possible basis for a safe and successful society".

Asked if he welcomes such comments in Reform, twice-married Mr Faragesaid: "I think one thing for certain is children who have two stable parents have a better chance in life... The most stable relationships, the ones that last the longest, tend to be between men and women.

"I'm not absolutist about this in any way at all. I do just happen to think there's an awful lot of kids in the country not getting the kind of start at home or at school that they deserve."

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Labour MP Nadia Whittome told the Independent: “This is vile homophobia that has no bearing on reality. Make no mistake: Farage is seeking to reopen settled debates on gay marriage and adoption, in order to stir up further hatred and division.

"The rights of the whole LGBT+ community would be in danger under a Reform government.”

A Stonewall spokesperson added: “In the modern world we live in, families are diverse and come in all shapes and sizes. The most important thing is for children to be brought up in a stable, supportive, loving environment that will enable them to develop and thrive.”

According to the Office for National Statistics, in 2023, divorce rates per 1,000 married individuals were 8.6 for men and 8.5 for women (including opposite and same-sex couples). Same-sex civil partnership dissolution rates were 7.4 for men and 11.2 for women per 1,000 civil partners.

Mr Kruger, a hardliner who helped head the hard-right New Conservatives group, will head a new unit aimed at preparing Reform for government.

After his defection, a Labour spokeswoman said: "Every Conservative who defects to Reform ties Nigel Farage more closely to their record of failure. Nigel Farage can recruit as many failed Tories as he likes – it won’t change the fact that he has no plan for Britain."

Mr Kruger follows former Tory MPs Nadine Dorries, Dame Andrea Jenkyns and Sir Jake Berry to Mr Farage's team.

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