Gay marriage: no culture wars, please, we’re British

Ever since the issue of gay marriage returned to British politics, we have seen the debate become crazier and crazier.  When Tony Blair handled this with his Civil Partnerships Act 2004, he did so with care and discretion, mindful of deeply-held opinions on either side of the debate. David Cameron seems to pursue gay marriage as some kind of defining mission statement, and seems to have driven his party quite mad. Nick Clegg released a speech drawing a distinction between the supporters of gay marriage and ‘bigots’. He revoked the b-word, but his tactic was clear. We are witnessing an attempt to bring American-style culture war to a country that has never known it – and is utterly unsuited to it. I look at this in my Telegraph column today.

First, let me get my own position on the record: I agree with Cameron. Religious freedom should be universal, and if some Unitarian churches or liberal strands of Judaism want to marry same-sex couples then the government ought not to ban them.