‘Gay cake’ discrimination case thrown out by European Court of Human Rights
On 6 January, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled that Lee’s claim against the bakery was inadmissible. In 2016, a Belfast county court and a court of appeal both reached the outcome that Lee had been discriminated against by the bakery because of his sexual orientation.
Two years later, however, the UK Supreme Court overturned the failed appeal by Ashers bakery – which is run by evangelical Christians – and said that the bakers in question were objecting to the slogan on the cake, as opposed to Lee himself.
By a majority decision, the ECHR confirmed that it would not reconsider the Supreme Court’s ruling due to Lee apparently relying on domestic law instead of invoking his rights under the European Convention on Human Rights.
It said: “The supreme court found on the facts of the case that the applicant was not treated differently on account of his real or perceived sexual orientation, but rather that the refusal to supply the cake was because of the defendants’ religious objection to gay marriage. “What was principally at issue, therefore, was not the effect on the applicant’s private life or his freedom to hold or express his opinions or beliefs, but rather whether Ashers bakery was required to produce a cake expressing the applicant’s political support for gay marriage.” The ECHR claimed that there was a balancing act it faced when considering the rights of Lee against those of Daniel and Amy McArthur, the owners of the bakery, which was “a matter of great import and sensitivity to both LGBTIQ communities and to faith communities”.
