UK Wedding News
06/11/2014
The Equality Commission in Northern Ireland has confirmed it could take court action against a Christian bakery after it refused to make a cake with a slogan supporting gay marriage.
In July this year, the family-run Ashers Baking Company declined an order to make a cake with the image of Sesame Street puppets Bert and Ernie. The characters were placed underneath the words, 'Support Gay Marriage'.
The cake had actually been ordered two months earlier by a gay activist for a civic event in Bangor, Co Down, to mark International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia. However, the story only reached the news in July when the bakery said it was facing possible legal action over its decision to refuse the order. A different bakery had chosen to fulfil the order following Ashers' refusal, who said the request was "at odds" with its Christian beliefs that marriage is between a man and a woman.
On Thursday (6 November), the Equality Commission confirmed it had again written to the baking company and said that unless it admitted to "breaching" equality laws and offered compensation, it would begin legal proceedings.
In a statement, the ECNI added that its correspondence with Ashers "made clear that the claimant will be seeking only modest damages for the upset and inconvenience caused".
However, it warned the bakery that if it failed to do this, "a civil bill will be issued".
In response, solicitors for Ashers have said their view remains "unchanged" and they have not acted unlawfully.
The case will now go before a court hearing.
(JP/CD)
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Gay Marriage Cake Case To Go To Court
The Equality Commission in Northern Ireland has confirmed it could take court action against a Christian bakery after it refused to make a cake with a slogan supporting gay marriage.
In July this year, the family-run Ashers Baking Company declined an order to make a cake with the image of Sesame Street puppets Bert and Ernie. The characters were placed underneath the words, 'Support Gay Marriage'.
The cake had actually been ordered two months earlier by a gay activist for a civic event in Bangor, Co Down, to mark International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia. However, the story only reached the news in July when the bakery said it was facing possible legal action over its decision to refuse the order. A different bakery had chosen to fulfil the order following Ashers' refusal, who said the request was "at odds" with its Christian beliefs that marriage is between a man and a woman.
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On Thursday (6 November), the Equality Commission confirmed it had again written to the baking company and said that unless it admitted to "breaching" equality laws and offered compensation, it would begin legal proceedings.
In a statement, the ECNI added that its correspondence with Ashers "made clear that the claimant will be seeking only modest damages for the upset and inconvenience caused".
However, it warned the bakery that if it failed to do this, "a civil bill will be issued".
In response, solicitors for Ashers have said their view remains "unchanged" and they have not acted unlawfully.
The case will now go before a court hearing.
(JP/CD)
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