Stonewall’s Top 100 Employers 2012 ranks the best employers for lesbian, gay and bisexual staff, from which the seven top Scottish employers have been extracted.

Clydesdale Bank won Scottish Network Group of the Year.

The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service is named as the most improved Scottish employer.

Stonewall’s Workplace Equality Index is drawn up from a staff satisfaction survey of over 7,500 lesbian, gay and bisexual employees and other indicators.

Barclays rose from tenth place to third in the overall UK rankings this year, behind the Home Office and Ernst & Young and has now been named the top Scottish employer.

Lloyds Banking Group came 18th overall, RBS was 45th and Clydesdale 67th.

Colin Macfarlane, Director of Stonewall Scotland said: “We’re delighted that seven Scottish organisations made the top 100 guide of best gay-friendly employers in Britain.

“In a labour market when competition for talent is stronger than ever before, the top Scottish employers featured in our guide have recognised the importance of sending a clear signal to staff, customers and to service users that they recognise that people perform better when they can be themselves. At a time when we need to ensure that Scotland utilises all its talent to ensure a strong and viable economy this has never been more important.”

Mark McLane, Managing Director, Head of Global Diversity and Inclusion, Barclays, said: “This recognition continues to affirm Barclays commitment to diversity and inclusion. Our partnership with Stonewall has been a vital enabler for our Spectrum Diversity Network in providing the resources essential in positioning Barclays as an employer of choice for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and ally community.”

Antony Jenkins, Chief Executive of Barclays Retail and Business Banking, added: “I firmly believe that we can only build a great business if we have talented people from all backgrounds contributing to our team at Barclays. That is why I’m thrilled that Stonewall has recognised our inclusive working environment for lesbian, gay and bisexual people; and that we have been rated as the top financial services company in the UK.”

In a memo discovered by Lee Bennett in firm archives in 2010, a partner at Bivonas LLP had written that he should be sacked and that he would “take our cases to his batty boy mate”.

The Employment Appeal Tribunal agreed with the original ruling that the content of the memo was “a professional slur of the utmost gravity”.

The law firm had claimed the note, written in 2008, was a “personal aide-memoire”, not intended to be kept or showed to anyone.

It lost its argument on appeal that the Employment Tribunal was wrong to say that the insult was a detriment.

The Employment Appeal Tribunal found no evidence that any straight men had been insulted in the same way as Mr Bennett for being gay.

The firm could not provide justification for treating Mr Bennett differently to other employees.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission funded Mr Bennett’s defence against the law firm’s appeal.

John Wadham, Group Director Legal, Equality and Human Rights Commission said: “Homophobia will not be tolerated in the workplace or anywhere else. We funded Mr Bennett’s defence and this win has set a precedent for discrimination law.”

Bivonas said it had “the appropriate measures in the light of the Tribunal’s observations”.

But the GLAAD petition, which has 22,500 signatures today, also aims to highlight the lack of protection gay and transgender people face in the workplace in most of the states.

The website OneMillionMoms.com, a project of the American Family Assocation, had asked readers to call the retailer and demand she be replaced with a straight face.

The website said: “Funny that JC Penney thinks hiring an open homosexual spokesperson will help their business when most of their customers are traditional families.

“More sales will be lost than gained unless they replace their spokesperson quickly.

“DeGeneres is not a true representation of the type of families that shop at their store. The majority of JC Penney shoppers will be offended and choose to no longer shop there.”

In response, GLAAD set up the Stand Up for Ellen petition to thank the retailer for hiring the gay TV star and to raise awareness that in most US states, it is legal to fire gay employees on the basis of their sexuality.

Herndon Graddick, GLAAD’s senior director of programs and communications “Since Ellen came out 15 years ago, the nation has evolved and support for LGBT people is at an all-time high.

“Although it is still legal to fire someone for being gay in 29 states, Americans are fair-minded people who know that firing someone just for being gay is not what this country is about.

“J.C. Penney is standing with Ellen and so do we.”

GLAAD also points out for transgender people, the figure is worse: In 34 states a person can be fired for being trans.

The Los Angeles Times ran a reader poll which showed 96% support for keeping Ellen as the face of JC Penney.

Ellen’s name was called into question last month. Australian radio host Jackie O, whose middle name is also Ellen, told listeners it now “sounds a bit lez”.

The poll of 326 actors was carried out by Equity, the union for actors, stage managers and models and published in The Stage today.

81% of respondents said they were openly gay in their professional life, and 94% were open to performers they are working with.

But 43% said they would not be so open talking to their agent.

Equity equalities officer Max Beckmann told The Stage: “The finding that 81% of survey respondents are out in their professional lives and that 73% found the decision to be out easy is hugely encouraging and suggests an industry in which it is safe to be out.

“What is troubling is the finding that only 57% of respondents are out to their agents and it’s particularly concerning 35% of respondents have experienced homophobia in their professional lives. This goes some way to explaining that many respondents say they weigh up whether or not to come out on a job by job basis, and while not hiding their orientation often do not ‘broadcast it’.

“Comments also suggest that actors remain fearful that coming out will hinder their prospects of being cast in certain roles such as romantic leads.”

More than half of the respondents said the negative implications of coming out which they feared included a narrower range of roles becoming available to them as gay actors.

Discussing his experience as a gay actor in a recent interview with PinkNews.co.uk, Simon Callow said: “The press wouldn’t let me come out. When they did interviews with me they’d ask, “Do you have a girlfriend?” and I would say, “No, I’m gay,” but they would never write it down.

“One woman from the Mail on Sunday, after a lot of meandering, said: “Now, I gather you’re bisexual?” I told her: “That’s an absolute calumny, I’m not bisexual, I’m entirely homosexual,” but it never appeared in the interview.”

Rupert Everett, who starred in My Best Friend’s Wedding, has suggested that his career was damaged by coming out in the 1990s.

In 2009, he told the Observer: “The fact is that you could not be, and still cannot be, a 25-year-old homosexual trying to make it in the British film business or the American film business or even the Italian film business.

“It just doesn’t work and you’re going to hit a brick wall at some point. You’re going to manage to make it roll for a certain amount of time, but at the first sign of failure they’ll cut you right off… Honestly, I would not advise any actor necessarily, if he was really thinking of his career, to come out.”

Other stars, including Cutting It’s Ben Daniels, have rejected Everett’s comments.

He told The Stage last year: “I would never advise anyone to stay in the closet to further their careers – I’m sure it leads to big fat gay ulcers.

“There are actors I know who won’t come out, and I can see it crippling them as human beings. It’s a great shame that people can’t be who they are in the 21st century, and people won’t let them be who they are.”

Malcolm Sinclair, actor and President of Equity, commented on the findings saying: “I have never felt that being gay has worked against me but the finding in Equity’s own survey that just under half of all gay performers are not out to their agent in the UK is worrying. But then work is scarce and, whether sexulaity is a barrier or not, people may just err on the side of caution. They don’t want to test the water to see if it’s all right.

“I think the great issue today is the nightmare problems facing gay teeenagers in coping with vicious bullying in schools.”

The Very Rev Jeffrey John, currently the Dean of St Albans has twice been overlooked to become a bishop due his sexuality. Dr John is in celibate civil partnership.

The 58-year-old, was forced to give up his appointment as Bishop of Reading in 2003 due to his sexuality and was blocked from the post Bishop of Southwark in 2010.

The Sunday Times reports that Dr John has hired Alison Downie, one of Britain’s leading Equality Act lawyers to fight his case. The newspaper claims that he is now no longer personally interested in becoming a bishop but wants to use a case against his alleged discrimination to allow other gay clergy to gain promotion.

A leaked memo by Colin Slee, the late Dean of Southwark Cathedral could prove critical in the case. It claims that Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, originally supported Dr John’s nomination for Bishop of Reading in 2003 but then personally blocked it. It is claimed that Dr Williams also supported Dr John’s promotion to bishop last year but then again blocked his appointment,

“We had two very horrible days in which I would say both archbishops behaved very badly,” wrote Mr Slee after the vote to appoint the Bishop of Southwark.

“The meeting was not a fair consideration at all; they were intent on wrecking both Jeffrey John and Nick Holtam [the Bishop of Salisbury] equally, despite the fact that their CVs were startlingly in an entirely different and better league than the other two candidates.

“The Archbishop of Canterbury was bad-tempered throughout. When it came to voting, certainly two — possibly three — members were in tears and [Dr Williams] made no
acknowledgment but carried on regardless.”

The leaked memo also makes the startling claim there are currently several gay bishops “who have been less than candid about their domestic arrangements and who, in a conspiracy of silence, have been appointed to senior positions”.

It added: “This situation cannot endure. Exposure of the reality would be nuclear.”

In 1994, the human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell and the group Outrage! Outed 10 bishops who were believed to be gay but publicly supported the discrimination of gay people.

An unnamed friend of Dr John told The Sunday Times: “When he was given and relinquished the position as Bishop of Reading, that was very hard for him to do. When he was shortlisted but didn’t receive the position of Bishop of Southwark, that was a very bitter blow for him. It doesn’t surprise me that he is considering taking action like this and I think he stands a very good chance.”

Another friend of Dr John said: “This is not a case of demanding something he is not entitled to but a way of resolving the flawed voting process that prevented him being made the Bishop of Southwark.”

Dr John, Ms Downie and the Church of England are not commenting on the case.

Steele, 38, was not seen at a match on Saturday after writing: “I wouldn’t fancy the bed next to Gareth Thomas #padlockeda**ehole”.

He was referring to Thomas’s appearance on the latest series of Celebrity Big Brother.

The comment about the openly-gay retired sportsman, made on Thursday, was subsequently removed.

Steele’s Twitter account has not been updated since.

The club said its officials had met to discuss the comment last night and posted a short statement on the club website this morning.

It said it had issued the following statement to the FA: “The Oxford City board have decided to release Lee Steele in view of his recent comment via social media which is considered seriously contrary to the ethos of the club.”

Mike Ford, the club’s manager, told the BBC sacking Steele was the hardest thing he had ever had to do in his career, but that he had to “pay for his error of judgement”.

He added that Steele’s comment, while homophobic in itself “doesn’t necessarily mean he’s homophobic”.

From 2000 to 2002, Steele played for Brighton and Hove Albion FC, a club whose supporters have often been faced with homophobic chants from rivals.

The former rugby player Ben Cohen, of the Ben Cohen StandUp Foundation which exists to combat bullying, tweeted that it was “Good to see Oxford City standing up against homophobia”.

Alan Duffy, Director of Communications for The Justin Campaign said: “While it is never pleasing to see someone lose a position in a club or company, we fully applaud the club’s decision to terminate the player’s contract.

“For far too long homophobic comments like the ones Steele made have been defended using the erroneous argument that such remarks as simply harmless “banter”. However, we no longer accept racist “banter”, and likewise, we must never accept homophobic “banter”.

“These kind of comments, in which being gay or bi-sexual is used as joke, have immense power in dissuading members of the LGBT community from either playing or watching football.

“Oxford City’s brave decision shows us that things are, slowly, moving in the right direction and that football is starting to take homophobia, biphobia and transphobia seriously.”

This series of Celebrity Big Brother will finish on 27 January. Gareth Thomas, known to many as Alfie, escaped the first round of nominations for eviction, and it is not known when he will leave the programme.

Oxford City FC plays in the Southern Football League Premier Division.

Among 25 new entries for 2012 is MI5, the UK’s counter-intelligence and security agency, at number 62.

Until 1989, the agency saw gays as too “vulnerable to corruption” to perform the high-level work at Thames House, but the Security Service now has a popular support group for LGBT employees.

Ernst & Young tops the Top 100 Employers 2012 list, up from third place last year.

The Home Office has been knocked off the top spot to second place, and Barclays has risen from tenth place to occupy third.

Stonewall says the 2012 Index has been revised with the most demanding criteria to date, introducing new weighting for global employers that recognises worldwide support for LGB equality.

The Employee Network Group of the Year goes to Accenture, and the Department of Energy and Climate Change is named Most Improved Employer.

Bill Payne, former Chief Executive of Metropolitan Housing Partnership, was named Individual Champion of the Year.

The full results will be announced at a ceremony tonight, hosted in London by Ernst & Young.

Lynne Featherstone, MP, Minister for Equalities, will present the accountancy firm with their award for Top Employer.

Liz Bingham, the firm’s Managing Partner for People said the commitment to diversity was important for employees, and “a business imperative in what is an increasingly competitive and interconnected world”.

Ben Summerskill, Stonewall Chief Executive said: “Competition for a place in the Top 100 was fiercer than ever this year.

“With new, more demanding criteria, every employer securing a position in the Top 100 has performed impressively – and the participating employers collectively employ over 1.9 million people.

“The Index remains a powerful tool used by Britain’s 1.7 million gay employees and 150,000 gay university students to decide where to take their talent and skills.”

Jonathan Evans, Director General of MI5, said: “The Security Service has worked hard in recent years to promote equality and diversity across all areas of its work. We are pleased to be recognised by Stonewall, but there is still more we can do. We will continue to support lesbian, gay and bisexual staff to make MI5 a truly inclusive place to work.”

The Index is based on a range of key indicators which this year included a confidential survey of lesbian, gay and bisexual employees, with over 7,500 participants.

This consistently confirmed that the satisfaction levels of gay staff were highest at the top-ranking organisations in the Index.

The top ten employers have been revealed as:

1 Ernst & Young
2 Home Office
3 Barclays
4 Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
5 Metropolitan Housing Partnership
6 Goldman Sachs
7 Accenture
8 IBM
9 Gentoo
10 Simmons & Simmons

The Corporate Equality Index measures how LGBT-friendly employers are by examining insurance and benefits policies for current employees, recruitment policies for new employees and retention rates for LGBT staff.

Nearly half the US states do not have laws prohibiting discrimination in the workplace on the grounds of sexual orientation.

Race, gender, religion, national origin or disability discrimination are prohibited at the federal level.

193 of the 850 surveyed organisations met all the criteria necessary for a top score, an increase from only 13 who did so in 2001.

Half of the top 20 companies, by revenue, scored full marks: AT&T, Chevron, Ford, JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America, Hewlett Packard, Citigroup, Cardinal Health, Wells Fargo and IBM.

Joe Solmonese, president of the Human Rights Campaign said: “Corporate America is leading the charge for equality in the workplace.

“We commend the businesses that participated in the CEI. They understand that LGBT-inclusive workplace policies are the right thing to do and good business practices.”

The full text of the Corporate Equality Index 2012 can be found on the Human Rights Campaign website.

Petty Officer 2nd Class Jase Daniels, 29, was discharged in 2007 after he appeared in an article about gays in the military within the Stars and Stripes military news publication.

Mr Daniels, a Hebrew linguist was sworn back into the armed forces yesterday. He served a year in Kuwait before being discharged. He is due to study Farsi at the Defense Language Institute.

Aubrey Sarvis, executive director of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, said the reinstatement of Daniels “underscores that all qualified and needed service members are now officially welcomed back into the ranks.”

The serviceman was one of three individuals who led a ground breaking case against the US armed forces in 2010 challenging the legality of the DADT policy.

Daniels was one of three plaintiffs in a 2010 case challenging the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.

http://www.pinknews.co.uk/?p=26178 Internet giant Google Inc has confirmed that its US transgendered staff will now be able to access improved corporate healthcare.

Earlier this week, the Trevor Project, which campaigns against homophobic bullying, awarded Google a prize for the way it’s has championed LGBT equality in the corporate sector, over the past decade.

Yolanda Mangolini, Director of Global Diversity & Inclusion and Talent & Outreach Programs at Google Inc, spoke of her gratitude at receiving the award and said it was an “honour”.

The move, which is legal as the university is privately funded, will see anyone who does not adhere to the Personal Lifestyle Statement risking immediate dismissal.

The statement also requires staffers to reject premarital sex and adultery.

It is mandatory for new employees and current employees whose contracts are due to be renewed.

Don Dowless, president of the university, said: “I think that anybody who adheres to a lifestyle that is outside of what the biblical mandate is and of what the board has passed, including the president, would not be allowed to continue here.

“Anything outside that is not biblical, we do not accept. We have a right to hire only Christians.’

By signing the document, employees agree to reject “all sexual activity not in agreement with the Bible, including, but not limited to premarital sex, adultery and homosexuality.”

ProudEmployers.org.uk lists jobs with employers such as Credit Suisse, BP and De Montford University – all of whom are members of the charity’s Diversity Champions programme.

Jobseekers can search by title and location, or browse vacancies by salary, category and type.

The charity has also launched a careers guide and website for graduate jobseekers.

Copies of ‘Starting Out’ will be distributed across student unions, LGBT societies, careers servcies and sixth forms, while students and graduates can also visit StartingOutGuide.org.uk.

All employers listed in the resources have committed to supporting gay staff and inclusive workplace policies.

Laura Doughty, Stonewall deputy chief executive, said: “Attracting, developing and retaining the most talented staff is key for all of the employers Stonewall works with.

“By advertising vacancies on our dedicated site or showcasing why they are an employer of choice in the careers guide, these employers directly reach out to lesbian, gay and bisexual talent, who look for employers who recognise that people perform better when they can be themselves.”

According to a Gaydar.co.uk poll of more than 5,000 users, 56 per cent are out to their employer and 82 per cent are out to friends.

Sixty-per cent have told their mothers about being gay but just 50 per cent have come out to their fathers.

The study also showed that 38 per cent of men have had to come out at least ten times to friends, family, neighbours and new colleagues.

It was released to mark National Coming Out Day, which is today.

Although 80 per cent said it was easier to come out now than ten years ago, 40 per cent said they had experienced homophobia with 30 per cent suffering verbal abuse and ten per cent experiencing violence.

Just one in ten said they liked to keep their sexuality completely private.

Simon Johnson, product manager at Gaydar.co.uk, said: “It’s encouraging to see that just a tenth of those questioned have not come out, and also that a majority of guys feel it easier to come out now than ten years ago.

“These findings highlight positive changes in peoples’ attitudes and, overall, great progression in society’s perceptions of the LGBT community.”

The research found that CVs which indicate an applicant is gay are 40 per cent less likely to be granted an interview than those which do not.

Harvard University researcher Andras Tilcsik sent two realistic but fictitious CVs to 1,700 white collar job openings, such as managerial positions.

One CV mentioned relevant experience in a university gay society as a treasurer, while the other listed experience in the ‘Progressive and Socialist Alliance’. Both were

Mr Tilcsik said that since employers are likely to associate both groups with left-leaning political views, this would separate any ‘gay penalty’ from the effects of political discrimination.

The results showed that applicants without the gay reference had an 11.5 per cent chance of being called for an interview. However, CVs which mentioned the gay society had only a 7.2 per cent chance. The difference amounted to a 40 per cent higher chance of the heterosexual applicant getting a call.

The study found that states in the South and Midwest – Florida, Ohio and Texas – had the largest differences in callback rates. However, minimal differences were found for Western and North-Eastern states such as California, Nevada, Pennsylvania and New York.

Mr Tilcsik said: “The results indicate that gay men encounter significant barriers in the hiring process because, at the initial point of contact, employers more readily disqualify openly gay applicants than equally qualified heterosexual applicants.”

The research also found that employers seeking stereotypically heterosexual male traits were more likely to discriminate against gay men.

CVs which listed the gay university society had lower callback rates when the employer described the ideal candidate for the job as “assertive,” “aggressive,” or “decisive.

“It seems, therefore, that the discrimination documented in this study is partly rooted in specific stereotypes and cannot be completely reduced to a general antipathy against gay employees,” Mr Tilcsik wrote.

The study was published today in the American Journal of Sociology.

These exciting roles will put the successful candidates at the heart of the UK’s most-read LGBT publication. Covering everything from politics to celebrities, you’ll drive our daily coverage of breaking news as well as working on long-term investigations, features and interviews.

An ideal stepping stone into a career in journalism, all of the previous holders of the role have gone on to successful careers in national journalism.

Your day could start with editing a column written by the leader of the opposition, continue with covering the latest developments on the fight for gay marriage in the United States and end with a reception in Downing Street while still managing to write around seven other stories for our worldwide audience. You’ll gain access to some of the most significant figures in British life, as well as developing a profile as an expert on LGBT rights and being called upon by national media companies to comment on issues involving the LGBT community.

The ideal candidates will have a strong degree from a respected university, preferably with a journalism qualification or at the least significant experience in reporting and media law. You’ll need to be confident to work autonomously as well as part of a team and be confident to sub your own stories. As an online publication, experience of SEO and social media is a must together with an ability to quickly learn how to use WordPress and Adobe Photoshop.

Working hours will vary and will involve working at the weekend from time to time at our office in Shoreditch, East London. There is the potential for one of the two full time and some of the freelance roles to be based outside of the UK, working from home.

PinkNews.co.uk welcomes applications from all, whatever your background. We’re looking for the best candidates regardless of whether you are LGBT or straight. All we ask is that you have a strong commitment to LGBT rights.

Click here to download an application form. Please email a completed form to jobs@pinknews.co.uk and indicate if you are applying for both permanent and freelance reporting roles.

The deadline is October 16th 2011. Candidates who are shortlisted will be invited to London for an interview in late October/early November.

The state began granting the benefits in 2008 but a 2009 law sought to remove them.

Yesterday, three judges at the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco upheld a lower court’s ruling that the law should be blocked.

They said that the law would violate the state’s Constitution.

Judges wrote: “When a state chooses to provide such benefits, it may not do so in an arbitrary or discriminatory manner that adversely affects particular groups that may be unpopular.”

The law had blocked health benefits for partners of gay employees and straight unmarried employees. However, heterosexual workers could restore their benefits by getting married.

Arizona does not allow gay couples to wed.

Jessica A Hudson, of Kanawha County, is seeking unspecified punitive damages and compensatory damages from the Bob Burdette Center in Charleston.

She also wants an order banning the centre from discriminating.

Her lawyer, Rick Brown, has refused to confirm whether she is a lesbian.

He told the Charleston Gazette: “The reason she was fired is because she was perceived as being a lesbian. Whether she is or not is immaterial.”

He says Ms Hudson was offered a job as chief executive of the centre after two interviews and was due to start work on June 29th.

But after the board held an emergency meeting, the offer was rescinded.

Ms Hudson’s lawsuit says the board told she had “inconsistencies” in her CV and had made “misrepresentations” during her interviews.

Mr Brown said Ms Hudson was told by a board member that the offer was rescinded because the board looked at her Facebook page, which led them to believe she was a lesbian.

The Bob Burdette Center has not commented.

Mr Buell was reinstated in his position after the school board ruled he did not violate their code of conduct.

It emerged that he had written in his syllabus: “I am a man of God and I try to be like Jesus every day. I teach God’s truth, I make very few compromises. If you believe you may have a problem with that, get your schedule changed, ’cause I ain’t changing!”

And on his website, he wrote: “I try to teach and lead my students as if Lake Co. Schools had hired Jesus Christ himself.”

Buell was sent home from Mount Dora High School for posting on Facebook: “I’m watching the news, eating dinner, when the story about New York okaying same sex unions came on and I almost threw up.

“If they want to call it a union, go ahead. But don’t insult a man and woman’s marriage by throwing it in the same cesspool as same-sex whatever! God will not be mocked. When did this sin become acceptable???”

Speaking to the Orlando Sentinel after his suspension, he insisted: “It wasn’t out of hatred. It was about the way I interpret things.”

He added: “I’ve had kids that I’ve known that have been homosexuals.They know that I don’t hate them. I love them.”

Of the religious aspects of Mr Buell’s syllabus, his lawyer told Orlando’s WFTV network: “The school district is saying that might run a foul to what they call the separation of church and state. We are going to have to evaluate the school’s position and engage them in some dialogue.”

While equality campaigners celebrated after seeing gay marriage legislation enacted in the state of New York, Jerry Buell, a high school teacher in Florida, made it known to hundreds of people on the social network that the “sin” had nearly made him vomit during his dinner.

Buell was sent home from Mount Dora High School after writing: “I’m watching the news, eating dinner, when the story about New York okaying same sex unions came on and I almost threw up.”

Speaking to the Orlando Sentinel after his suspension, he had said: “It wasn’t out of hatred. It was about the way I interpret things.”

He added: “I’ve had kids that I’ve known that have been homosexuals.They know that I don’t hate them. I love them.”

Mr Buell had also written: “If they want to call it a union, go ahead. But don’t insult a man and woman’s marriage by throwing it in the same cesspool as same-sex whatever! God will not be mocked. When did this sin become acceptable???”

The district’s code forbids “behavior that disrupts the orderly processes of the district”.

While Buell sees the decision as a victory for First Amendment rights, Chris Patton, communications officer for Lake County schools, said: “Social media is a minefield.”

On the subject of teachers’ private lives, he added: “Even when they leave the doors of the school, they’re still bound by those code ethics.”

The school board has issued a list of directives for Buell to comply with before his return to teaching, which will not be made public for ten days.

Due to the summer holidays, Buell will only miss three days’ contact with students during his suspension.

Liberal Democrat MP Adrian Sanders said the motion had caused a “great deal of upset” and did not clearly state its intentions.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission recently announced it would seek to advise in four court cases where Christians have claimed they suffered discrimination because they were not permitted to express their beliefs.

Two of the cases involve workers who refused to serve gay people – a registrar and a sex counsellor – and the EHRC said compromises and adjustments could be made for them in the same way as disabled people are accommodated at work.

Conservative MP Gary Streeter, who chairs parliament’s Christian group, tabled the early day motion in support of the move but denied it supports discrimination.

Mr Sanders is one of at least four MPs who have withdrawn their name from the motion. Liberal Democrat MPs Mike Hancock and John Hemming, plus Labour MP John McDonnell have all criticised the move.

Mr Sanders told the Herald-Express: “It’s caused a great deal of upset.

“It seemed to be against the persecution of people because of their faith, in this case Christian.

“It doesn’t tell you what these cases are. It’s actually the case that allows people to discriminate against people because they are gay.

“When a person is wanting to trade in a secular market place you can’t have discrimination.”

Early day motions are used to draw attention to issues and do not require action from MPs. However, Mr Streeter recently announced that a parliamentary inquiry will be held this autumn about Christians’ rights.

Speaking to the Western Morning News last week, Mr Streeter said: “This is about freedom of religion for everybody in this country, including Christians in their own country.

“A lot of people feel people of faith have been marginalised, and it’s time to debate that.”

He added: “We have been over-tolerant to a number of groups, apart from Christianity. There’s a sort of snarling anger if you do believe what the Bible says.”

Stonewall, Peter Tatchell and the Trades Union Congress have all strongly criticised the EHRC, with Stonewall chief executive Ben Summerskill calling the decision “deeply disturbing”.

Trades Union Congress wrote to EHRC chief executive Trevor Phillips to express “deep concern”.