Tatchell: Pope does not deserve honour of state visit

Peter Tatchell, organiser of the Protest the Pope campaign, comments on the Pope’s visit to the UK.

“We are urging David Cameron and Nick Clegg to disassociate the British government from the Pope’s often harsh, intolerant views.

“Pope Benedict XVI does not deserve the honour of a state visit. He says women are unfit to be priests, childless couples should be denied fertility treatment and potentially life-saving embryonic stem cell research ought to be banned.

“The Pope insists that rape victims should be denied an abortion, using condoms to stop the spread of HIV is immoral and gay people are not entitled to equal human rights. On all these issues, Benedict is out of step with the majority of British people, including many Catholics.”