Ashers Baking Co. to appeal court ruling

The owners of Ashers Baking Company have announced plans to appeal last week’s judgment. A court ruled that the business discriminated against a customer by declining to decorate a pro-gay marriage campaign cake.

The McArthur family refused to decorate the cake because of their firmly-held belief that marriage is between one man and one woman.

But last week Judge Brownlie ruled that Ashers broke political and sexual orientation discrimination laws, and fined the business £500.

Now the McArthur family has announced plans to appeal the judgment, after careful consideration of legal advice.

In a statement, they said: “We continue to insist that we have done nothing wrong as we have discriminated against no individual but rather acted according to what the Bible teaches regarding marriage.”

Many commentators have spoken out against the ruling, highlighting the blow it is to freedom of expression.

Pro-LGBT broadcaster Fionola Meredith said the ruling was about “silencing and punishing those who refuse to sign up to a clearly-flawed ‘equality’ agenda”.

And writing in the Spectator, Melanie McDonagh disagreed with the “simply astonishing” idea that workers at Ashers should be obliged to take part, “through their icing bags”, in promoting gay marriage.

C4M is pleased that Ashers is going to continue to stand for true marriage, and we hope their appeal is successful.