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British Airways Boycott by Gays and Lesbians Urged

by Andy Harley

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Gays and lesbians worldwide are being asked to take part in a little “ethical consumerism” by trying to find and alternative to flying by British Airways.

The move comes following remarks made in the UK House of Lords by a BA non-executive director, Baroness O’Cathain, a Tory peer, during a debate on the Civil Partnership Bill which would give same-sex couples most of the rights enjoyed by married heterosexual couples.

“There are very few homosexuals in Northern Ireland,” claimed Lady O’Cathain as she tried to exclude Northern Ireland from the Bill.

And she cited that there were just 288 same-sex couples living together in Northern Ireland, according to the census.

The remarks have infuriated the gay and lesbian community in both Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom. 

Ben Summerskill, the chief executive of Stonewall, commented:  “The intervention confirms our worries at Stonewall that there would be attempts to damage the Civil Partnership Bill which were not predicted, and this was one of them. But thankfully we were on duty in the Lords at the moment she said this.

“Within hours, our great parliamentary team had produced a robust response for distribution to peers.

“Lady O'Cathain’s sneer is, of course, the rallying cry of the anti-gay bully throughout the centuries. There are so few homosexuals that their rights don't matter. And in the meantime, by pretending we don't exist we can be intimidated into staying within the closet.

“Happily, there's no chance of that happening in Northern Ireland. There's a robust lesbian and gay community there.  It was a Northern Ireland man, Jeff Dudgeon, who stood up to the province's bigots and took Britain to the European Court a quarter of a century ago when they failed to decriminalise gay relations at the same time as England and Wales,” he pointed out.

In the Lords, Home Office minister Baroness Scotland suggested that many people were still reluctant to answer the somewhat vague question on their domestic arrangements. Lady O’Cathian then said that Northern Ireland “was different”.

“It may still be true that some lesbians and gay men are driven out of the province by prejudice,” Summerskill commented in a newsletter to Stonewall supporters.  “But that's hardly a reason for making an exception when it comes to introducing civil partnership.

“If anything, it seems to suggest that Northern Ireland needs the civilising influence of civil partnership even more than the rest of Britain,” he suggested.

Baroness O’Cathain has often expressed views that are offensive to gay and lesbians over the years.

“I'm now one of the people who resolve not to fly British Airways – where she is a director – if I possibly can,” Summerskill said.  “I hope you'll join me, and so many others, in demonstrating new-style "ethical consumerism" in this way.”

Baroness O’Cathian has been a non-executive director of British Airways since 1993 and currently receives a basic remuneration of £27,500 for a minimum of 15 days time commitment a year. 

21 May, 2004