Gay couple 'gobsmacked' after Christian painter refuses to work on their house
31 July 2023, 14:38
A gay couple have launched a complaint after a Christian painter refused to decorate their house because of her religious beliefs.
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Joshua and George, who did not give their surnames, said the female painter texted them to say she wouldn't work for them because of "recommended guidelines" at her church.
The couple have since complained to the website where they found her, and hope to raise awareness about homophobia.
Joshua, 23, said he was left "seething" and "gobsmacked" by her message.
But the couple resisted calls to name and shame the woman because she "does not deserve to be piled on".
Joshua told LGBTQ magazine Attitude: "I don't necessarily feel comfortable holding the doors, and opening the floodgates. I have this person's details. If I wanted to, yes, I could release them.
Read more: European Court throws out 'gay cake' discrimination case
"But to be honest, something that I'm conscious of is, I don't want to be really the facilitator in what is now thousands of people who could potentially go to this individual.
"That individual as much as we don't respect her does not deserve to be piled on."
Joshua and his 26-year-old partner George bought their property in Bristol in June last year.
They asked the painter round for a quote to repaint their bedroom, after finding her on the tradespersons' website - but Joshua said he noticed a change in her attitude when he mentioned George.
"We were in the master bedroom when she asked if my partner was in and I replied 'no he's not' that I first thought something was wrong," he told ITV News.
Joshua said they did not ask for anything political, like a pride rainbow.
"We just wanted a normal, boring paint job," he said.
It is illegal to discriminate against someone because of their sexual orientation in the UK.
Other high-profile cases of Christian businesses refusing gay people their services include a bakery in Northern Ireland telling a man they would not make a cake bearing the slogan 'Support Gay Marriage'.
A seven year legal battle launched by would-be customer Gareth Lee ended with the case against Ashers Bakery being dismissed as inadmissible by the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.
Elsewhere, a Christian couple told a gay man and his partner who wanted to buy their house that they would not even be able to view the property.
