Pilgrim Planet Lodge: gay couples still not welcome. Gay couples are still not welcome to share a bed at the Pilgrim Planet Lodge. After issuing an apology to the lesbian couple they turned away, owner of the Whangarei motel Michael Ruskin has told the New Zealand Herald they would not be welcome at the lodge: "Not as a same-sex couple." When asked whether same-sex guests in general could stay at Pilgrim Planet, he said: "They will not get a double bed - I'm sticking to my principles." The complainant in the case, Jane Collison, is respecting the terms of the confidential mediation and not commenting. The resolution comes as two similar cases are headed to the Supreme Court in the UK. Anti-gay Christian bed and breakfast owner Suanne Wilkinson has lost her appeal after she turned away gay couple Michael Black and John Morgan, refusing to let them share a double bed. She is now taking the case to the Supreme Court, where it will be heard in October. At the same time, the court will hear the case of Peter and Hazelmary Bull, who refused to let a gay couple stay in their Cornwall B
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Thursday, 11th July 2013 - 9:29am