Gay British politician resigns over housing $ controversy
Mon. May 31, 2010 12:00 AM by GoPride.com News Staff
Chicago, IL -
Britain's chief secretary to the treasury, 44-year-old closeted gay banker David Laws, has resigned after being sucked down by a political scandal.
For more than a year, British newspapers have been tracking down instances of politicians abusing the country's system of taxpayer-funded housing reimbursements. Several politicians have had to resign after it was revealed they were using taxpayer money to pay their own spouses for rental housing and for moat maintenance.
Laws got caught up in the same issue: he's been "renting" a bedroom from his long-time gay partner. British papers say that Laws had claimed more than $60,000 in taxpayer reimbursements to pay his partner. They've been lovers since 2001.
Laws said that he didn't think he was breaking the rules because basically he does not consider his partner to be his partner.
"We did not treat each other as spouses. For example, we do not share bank accounts, and indeed have separate lives," he said.
Gay politicians in Britain said that Laws could have avoided this whole disaster if he'd just been honest about his sexuality in the first place.
"In the modern world, it's far less of a bombshell than it was a decade ago," lawmaker Alan Duncan told the New York Times. "But in David's case, he chose a path, and once you go down that path you get trapped in it."
For more than a year, British newspapers have been tracking down instances of politicians abusing the country's system of taxpayer-funded housing reimbursements. Several politicians have had to resign after it was revealed they were using taxpayer money to pay their own spouses for rental housing and for moat maintenance.
Laws got caught up in the same issue: he's been "renting" a bedroom from his long-time gay partner. British papers say that Laws had claimed more than $60,000 in taxpayer reimbursements to pay his partner. They've been lovers since 2001.
Laws said that he didn't think he was breaking the rules because basically he does not consider his partner to be his partner.
"We did not treat each other as spouses. For example, we do not share bank accounts, and indeed have separate lives," he said.
Gay politicians in Britain said that Laws could have avoided this whole disaster if he'd just been honest about his sexuality in the first place.
"In the modern world, it's far less of a bombshell than it was a decade ago," lawmaker Alan Duncan told the New York Times. "But in David's case, he chose a path, and once you go down that path you get trapped in it."