Homosexual campaigners have boasted about how they hope to use the new Equality Bill to force local councils to back their demands.
The claim is made on a site called equalitybill.com, run by a political campaigner who also works for Lord Alli, an openly gay Peer in the House of Lords.
Theo Grzegorczyk says that Canterbury City Council has decided not to back a plan to promote gay plays in the council-owned theatre.
The council has encouraged the group that made the suggestion, Pride in Canterbury, to promote the plays themselves.
According to the Council’s website, it appears to have endorsed at least two events organised by Pride in Canterbury in the last two years.
In an article for his Equality Bill website Mr Grzegorczyk says Canterbury Council’s decision is “unacceptable” and “a good reason to support the Equality Duty”.
He adds that under the Equality Bill, “this behaviour would be made quite literally illegal.”
Mr Grzegorczyk believes that the Council’s behaviour amounts to “refusing point-blank to engage with the LGBT community”.
The claim will stoke fears that elements of the Equality Bill could be used by homosexual activist groups to exert a disproportionate influence in public life.
The positive duties brought in by the Equality Bill would mean that public bodies, like local councils, will be forced to promote ‘equality’ in areas including sexual orientation.
Although there are similar duties applying to religion, Christian groups have pointed to a number of recent cases where ‘gay rights’ legislation has appeared to supersede protections for religious belief.