Business owners should be able to follow conscience

Dear Editor, The Tanaiste, Joan Burton, said there will be legislation to ensure that same-sex couples are not denied goods and services by businesses. No doubt she was referring to Ashers Bakeries in Belfast, a well-known Christian business. Ashers were asked to make a wedding cake bearing the slogan Support Gay Marriage. They refused on grounds of ethos and freedom of conscience.

Ashers were correct and true to themselves in refusing. All businesses should have the right to refuse work on conscience grounds. After coercing coalition deputies to vote for abortion legislation, one would imagine that the present Government cannot understand why people act on conscience grounds. But many people have consciences and do so.

The gay lobby is the best in the world at getting publicity. They get so much that ordinary citizens must think they form a large section of the Irish population. They would never guess that surveys in the US, England and elsewhere have found that they number no more than 1.5% of the adult population. For such a small percentage of Irish citizens, they certainly make a lot of demands! The civil partnership legislation (2011) should have met their needs.  Yet since its enactment, civil partnerships have been less than 2% of all marriages in the same period.

Yours etc.,

John O’Reilly,

Merrion Square, Dublin 2.