The ABC’s fact checking department has looked into claims made by Karina Okotel from the Coalition for Marriage during her Q&A appearance last week and declared them “baseless“.
During the discussion on Monday 23 October the Liberal Party’s Vice President said a consequence of same sex marriage would be an inevitable flow on effect to how Christian schools were able to teach sex education.
An audience member asked Okotel about claims she made regarding a Jewish school in London. During an address at the National Press Club, Okotel said the school had faced closure for failing to teach about homosexuality and gender diversity.
It’s a claim the spokesperson for the Coalition for Marriage has made on several occasions, and it has also been repeated by other prominent members of the ‘No’ campaign including WA Campaign Director Peter Abetz and Australian Christian Lobby Managing Director Lyle Shelton.
The Fact checking unit based at RMIT found there was no basis to Okotel’s assertions.
“Ms Okotel’s claim is baseless” the Fact checking team posted to their website.
“Experts say the British Government’s efforts to standardise relationships and sex education throughout English schools by 2019 is not a result of, and is unrelated to, the legalisation of same-sex marriage in England in 2013.
“The Jewish school referred to by Ms Okotel has indeed failed inspections by Ofsted, the regulatory body.
“But this is a result of alleged breaches of the UK’s anti-discrimination law, the Equality Act 2010, which came into force years before same-sex marriage became legal.
“The UK authority says the inspection result has “nothing to do” with same-sex marriage.
The fact checkers also dismissed Okotel’s claim that British Prime Minister Theresa May had just made a announcement regarding a plan to introduce gay sex education into schools.
While Fact Check has revealed the aspiring politicians claims on the program were dubious, the Coalition for Marriage spokesperson admitted that a central part of the ‘No’ campaigns long running argument was something she didn’t believe herself.
Okotel said she had no problem with children being raised by same sex parents, and agreed that homosexual parents were as good as heterosexual parents.
“I don’t have any issue with gay people parenting.” Okotel said.
Okotel said she was however opposed to all reproductive technology, including that for heterosexual married couples.
Read the full Fact Check report.
OIP Staff
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