George Galloway hangs up on Lewis Goodall after being asked to explain why he said ‘gay relationships aren’t equal’

5 May 2024, 10:59 | Updated: 5 May 2024, 21:08

George Galloway abruptly ends his call with Lewis Goodall

George Galloway has furiously hung up on LBC's Lewis Goodall after he was asked to explain why he said gay relationships are neither the 'norm' nor 'equal'.

Galloway, leader of the Workers Party of Britain, told Novara Media that he does not want his children to be taught "that gay relationships are exactly the same and as normal as a mum, a dad and kids".

Asked by LBC's Lewis Goodall to explain his comments, Galloway furiously claimed he was being ambushed and that he had been presented with an edited clip - which is untrue.

The clip played was shortened, though a longer clip was then played by Lewis.

Listen to Sunday with Lewis Goodall on Global Player, the official LBC app.

LBC plays full clip of George Galloway's comments

Galloway was pressed further by Lewis on why he made the comments, including that the generation would die out in two generations if gay relationships were 'equal', but the politician simply hung up the phone.

"This is a clip of a clip, it is an edited clip you clipped out the point about the 97 genders," Galloway claimed.

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"Don't think I don't know what I said, I'm not going to have a barney, I came on here to speak about the elections now you're ambushing me with an edited clip of an edited clip," he went on.

"I’ve got a simple answer, listen to the whole thing tonight and come back, you haven't given your listeners the whole thing, I'm going to hang up now. Fool me thinking your request to talk about the elections was genuine."

Galloway's comments on Novara Media

Speaking to Novara Media, Galloway said: “I don’t want my children prematurely sexualised at all, I don’t want them taught that some things are normal when their parents don’t believe that they’re normal.”

“Now there’s lots of things not normal, doesn’t mean you have to hate something that isn’t normal. But if my children are taught that there’s – whatever the current vogue number is – 76 or 97 or whatever the number of purported genders that exist, I don’t want my children taught that.”

Mr Galloway said he didn’t want children to be taught “that gay relationships are exactly the same and as normal as a mum, a dad and kids”

"I want my children to be taught that the normal thing in Britain, in society across the world, is a mother, a father and a family.

"I want them to be taught that there are gay people in the world and that they must be treated with respect and affection as I treat my own gay friends and colleagues with respect and affection but I don't want my children to be taught that these things are equal because I don't believe them to be equal."

Left-wing pressure group Momentum responded on X, formerly Twitter, posting that Mr Galloway’s comments were “shameful”.“This kind of blatant homophobia and opposition to LGBT rights has no place on the Left."

Galloway became the MP for Rochdale after a victorious by-election in February that was centred around the Gaza war.

He polled 12,335 votes, nearly 6,000 more than any other candidate after Labour withdrew their support for candidate Azhar Ali over remarks widely alleged to be antisemitic, which he later apologised for.

Galloway previously represented Glasgow, East London and Bradford for Labour and the Respect Party.

Late on Sunday, gay rights activist Peter Tatchell spoke to LBC about Galloway's comments.

He said: "What I heard George Galloway say very clearly was gay relationships are "not normal" and "not equal" and he further went onto say he didn't want his children to be taught that gay relationships are equal or normal.

"Now that echoes the kind of far-right extremism of the British National Party and other far-right sects. It has nothing to do with the history of the labour movement which George Galloway claims to be a part of.

"What he said was clearly deeply, deeply offensive. It was giving gist to the idea that gay people aren't normal, are not equal and do not deserve to be so. That's profoundly shocking, profoundly shocking".