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Labour MP praises anti-LGBTQ+ church

UK Labour MP Stephen Timms has been criticised for praising the Jesus House church.

Stephen Timms

UK Labour MP Stephen Timms has been criticised for praising the Jesus House church, following a visit from leader Keir Starmer which saw considerable backlash. On April 6, Timms tweeted: “I applaud the extraordinary work of Jesus House, and of churches and other faith groups, in supporting our communities throughout the past year.”

Writer James Felton responded to his tweet saying: “Are there any non-homophobic churches you could single out for praise instead?” Another social media user added: “Given his record of voting against LGBTQ+ rights I think it’s pretty clear why he’s praised a church that supports conversion therapy and exorcising its gay parishioners.” In response to the criticism, Timms told HuffPost UK that Jesus House told him it regarded “homophobia as anti-Christian”.

Keir Starmer

Meanwhile, Starmer apologised and removed the video of himself visiting the church, saying: “I completely disagree with Jesus House’s beliefs on LGBTQ+ rights, which I was not aware of before my visit.”

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