Julia Gillard Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard has pulled out of speaking to an Australian Christian Lobby conference after "offensive" comments from its leader Jim Wallace, who said smoking was healthier than same-sex marriage. "To compare the health effects of smoking cigarettes with the many struggles gay and lesbian Australians endure in contemporary society is heartless and wrong," Gillard says in a statement. "In light of this, I believe my attendance at the conference would be inappropriate." Gillard has urged people to use respectful language when participating in the public debate on marriage. Wallace has told AAP many people will see Gillard’s move as “the abandonment of the Christian constituency.” He also said his comments had been misrepresented and were more nuanced than the headlines portrayed, but he was not backing away from the sentiment. "I think homosexual people are well aware of the consequences of their lifestyle," he said.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Friday, 7th September 2012 - 12:20pm