Gay MP reveals brutal street attack

Pudsey MP Stuart Andrew was hailed by Tory and opposition MPs after he told the Commons how he was set upon by a gang of men “because of who, and what, I am”.

Mr Andrew said the attack 16 years ago had a “profound effect”, but his recovery was aided by pro-equality steps taken by Parliament under the last Government.

In a highly personal speech as MPs debated the coalition’s proposals to allow same-sex marriage, Mr Andrew also spoke of the “hardest and darkest” years he spent trying to balance his Christian faith with his homosexuality.

“Religious faith is not just the preserve of heterosexuals,” he said. “One of my hardest challenges was balancing my sexuality with my faith.

“It has taken me years to do that, and some of those battles were the hardest and darkest in my life.”

The Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill cleared its third reading in the Commons on Tuesday night, despite strong opposition from Tory backbenchers who had sought to derail its passage.

Mr Andrew, 41, paid tribute to MPs on both sides who maintained a “calm and measured tone” – but blasted others who used more “extreme” language.

In particular, he turned his attention to former Tory Defence Minister Sir Gerald Howarth, who told MPs on Monday of his fear at what he dubbed “the aggressive homosexual community”.

“I fear the playing field is not being levelled,” the Aldershot MP said. “I believe the pendulum is swinging so far the other way, and there are plenty in the aggressive homosexual community who see this as but a stepping stone to something even further.”

The remarks were widely ridiculed on the social networking site Twitter, and Mr Andrew described his colleague’s stance as “disappointing.”

“The extremes on both sides of the cause have not acted well,” Mr Andrew said. “It has been disappointing, to say the least, to hear some of the phrases used. The term ‘aggressive homosexuals’ was just one such phrase.”

Mr Andrew, 41, then turned the phrase deftly on its head, highlighting the incident in north Wales in 1997 in which both he and his father were hospitalised in a violent homophobic attack.

“I am not an aggressive man, but I have had the misfortune of facing aggression in a violent, physical form,” he said, adding jokingly that he was not referring to “that incident” last year when he was infamously headbutted by Labour MP Eric Joyce in a Commons bar.

“In 1997, I was attacked and beaten unconscious by three men because of who and what I am,” Mr Andrew said. “That had a profound effect on me at that time, but in time I fought back, and what helped were the decisions taken in (Parliament).”

Mr Andrew’s speech was warmly praised on all sides of the House. Labour’s Hilary Benn, the MP for Leeds Central, described his words as “powerful and moving”. Julian Smith, the Tory MP for Skipton and Ripon, said anyone opposed to gay marriage should read the speech.

Mr Andrew and Mr Smith were among five backbench Tory MPs from Yorkshire to support the Bill, along with Brigg and Goole’s Andrew Percy, Harrogate and Knaresborough’s Andrew Jones, and Keighley’s Kris Hopkins.

Eight of their Conservative colleagues from the region voted against, including Government whip Robert Goodwill and Ministerial aides Julian Sturdy and Alec Shelbrooke. One Labour MP from Yorkshire, Leeds East’s George Mudie, also voted against the Bill.