Stirling’s Conservative MP has faced criticism from constituents for his delay in signing the LGBTI Equality Pledge.
The pledge aims to put focus on LGBTI equality and human rights in the UK parliament by inviting Scotland’s newly elected MPs to sign. However so far, 11 MPs are yet to give their support to the pledge.
Nine of Scotland’s new Conservative MPs are yet to support the pledge, along with one Labour and a Liberal Democrat.
This includes newly elected Stirling MP Stephen Kerr causing a backlash from his constituents.
Ryan Peteranna, politics and journalism student at Stirling University, told Brig that he had written to the Tory MP, who won the seat with a majority of 148 votes, to ask for his assurance that he would support the pledge.
However Stephen’s response lacked any promise of support for the pledge, instead promising to “champion equality of rights for all” particularly those who had faced prejudice.
Ryan said he was “disappointed” with Kerr’s reply, he said: “I’ll be honest, I am disappointed by his failure to commit to it.
“In my view, I don’t think the pledge is asking for that much, just to ensure existing equalities protections are revised to include, inter alia, people who are trans, non-binary and intersex.”
On its website, Equality Network are asking the MPs to support the pledge for issues such as asylum for people fleeing due to facing persecution because they are LGBTI and protecting the Equality Act 2010 in Brexit negotiations.
The news follows the revelation that Kerr served as Stake President and an Area Seventy at Scotland’s Mormon Church, Church Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while young gay men claim they had been outed, according to the Sunday Herald.
Stephen Kerr has been approached for comment.
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