Tim Dieppe comments on the news that Roger Godsiff MP was
deselected by the Labour Party for the next General Election
after standing up for parents’ rights. Christian Concern.
Former Labour MP for Birmingham Hall Green,
Roger Godsiff has been banned from standing by
the Labour Party after telling protestors in Birmingham
that they had “a just cause” for protesting about sex
education programmes in primary schools.
He said to protestors: “I will continue to try and fight
your corner because you’re right. Nothing more,
nothing less. You’re right.”
Roger Godsiff has subsequently confirmed that he will
run as an independent in the general election. In the
2017 election he received 78% of the vote with a majority
of 33,944.
‘Small intolerant vindictive group’
In a statement explaining why he is standing as an
independent labour candidate he said:
“I have always put the interests of my constituents
above everything else and I don’t succumb to threats.
I have supported the rights of parents to have a say,
not a veto, over how the most sensitive aspects of the
Equality Act are taught to young children. In doing
this I incurred the anger of a small intolerant vindictive
group within the LGBT community who were totally
opposed to the concept of ‘age appropriateness’ as is
allowed in the legislation and the accompanying DFE
guidance.”
“The small group within the LGBT community who are
fanatically opposed to parents having any say in how
their 4/5 year old children are taught highly sensitive
issues such as sexual orientation and gender assignment
have had their ‘human sacrifice’ but I have no intention
of walking away quietly.”
He went on to allege that the headteacher of Anderton
Park primary school, which is in his constituency, privately
told him that she agreed with him about age-appropriateness
, but said that if she taught in that way then “the LGBT
community would have something to say about it.” He later reflected “that no group within our democratic society
should have the right to veto how legislation passed by
parliament should be implemented.”
Keith Vaz not banned
Meanwhile, the Labour party has yet to prevent former
MP Keith Vaz from standing in East Leicester. The House
of Commons Committee on Standards released a scathing
report on 28 October which found that Keith Vaz had
engaged in paid-for sex with two men and had offered
to buy illegal drugs for a third person to use. This occurred
in 2016 while Mr Vaz was chairing the Home Affairs Select
Committee which was conducting inquiries into drugs and
prostitution. There was therefore a clear conflict of interest,
as well as a breach of the Code of Conduct for MPs.
The Committee on Standards also found that Mr Vaz showed
disrespect for the law and failed to fully co-operate with the
inquiry process. It recommended that Mr Vaz be suspended
as
an MP for an unprecedented six months.
A statement on Mr Vaz’s website says he has been admitted
to hospital and is receiving treatment for a serious mental
health
condition. The Labour Party has been criticised for
refusing to remove the
whip from Mr Vaz. The Shadow Home Secretary, Dianne
Abbott has said
that Mr Vaz should agree not to be a candidate.
Hopefully Roger Godsiff will retain his seat
It appears that the Labour Party is keen to deselect someone
who stands up for parents’ rights, while refusing to discipline
someone who has flagrantly broken the law. What standards
does the Labour Party stand for? I hope that Roger Godsiff
is able to retain his seat in defiance of the Labour Party in the forthcoming election.
*Since this article was published, Keith Vaz MP has
announced that he will be retiring from Parliament
and therefore not standing in the General Election.
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