Ukip suspends councillor who made gay marriage slurs

The Prime Minister and a Tory MP have mocked the UK Independence Party after one of its former councillors blamed the recent storms on the legalisation of gay marriage.

David Cameron and Brighton Kemptown MP Simon Kirby took aim at now suspended Ukip councillor David Silvester's claims that Britain had been "beset by storms" since the passage of the new law on gay marriage.

During Prime Minister's questions, Mr Kirby said: "I am incredibly proud to represent a large gay community in my constituency. Would you agree with me that despite the views of some that the weather in Brighton is nearly always very sunny?"

Mr Cameron replied: "You stand up for all your constituents with great vim and vigour and I think in reward it would only be fair if Brighton Kemptown was actually put in place on the shipping forecast somewhere between Dover and Wight. I think we should get a reflection of this every morning."

Read: Ukip suspends councillor who made gay marriage slurs

In response to coverage of Ukip councillor David Silvester's comments about recent floods and same-sex marriage, the party's leader Nigel Farage has tweeted:

Read: Ukip councillor blames flooding on same-sex marriage

Ukip leader Nigel Farage has accused the media of unfairly highighting the views of one of its councillor's about recent floods and gay marriage.

Henley-on-Thames councillor David Silvester has been suspended after he said the country has been "beset by storms" since the decision to legalise on gay marriage because David Cameron had acted "arrogantly against the Gospel".

Mr Farage said: "I think it is very interesting that, when Mr Silvester was saying these things in 2012 and 2013 as a Conservative town councillor in Henley, it was not a news story.

"But suddenly he switches to Ukip and continues the same thing and gets on the national news.

"The establishment, the status quo, the big businesses, the big Eurocrats and our three so-called main political parties are scared witless by what Ukip is doing because we are striking a chord not just for ordinary people but for many elements in the business community as well.

"They will try to do whatever they can to shoot us down."

Read: Farage attacks councillor's gay marriage slurs coverage

Ukip has suspended councillor David Silvester, who claimed that recent flooding was the result of the decision to legalise gay marriage, a party spokeswoman said today.

Ukip leader Nigel Farage has promised to purge the party of its more extreme candidates ahead of the European council elections in May.

Read: Ukip councillor blames flooding on same-sex marriage

The pledge comes after Ukip councillor David Silvester blamed the recent storms and floods on same-sex marriage and MEP Godfrey Bloom called African countries "Bongo Bongo Land" last year.

Mr Farage told The Sun (£): "Politics needs people with personality and backgrounds and they will all have one or two flaws. I have got my own red lines on this. That is real extremism and nastiness.

"We introduced a set of criteria by which we judged the exiting MEPs on how they've performed and what they have done.

"Some have been pushed and some have jumped. Of 13 MEPs elected, there are about five who won't be on the list of runners and riders again. Of all the candidates we fielded, only about half a dozen have caused us any embarrassment."

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Ukip narrowly slipped ahead of Labour and the Conservatives in a poll to find out which political party voters viewed most favourably, but Prime Minister David Cameron beat Ukip leader Nigel Farage in a rating of the party's political leaders.

How the political leaders were rated:

• David Cameron - Conservatives: 27%
• Nigel Farage - Ukip: 22%
• Ed Miliband - Labour: 18%
• Nick Clegg - Liberal Democrats: 13%

Read: Voters view Ukip 'more favourably' than other parties

British voters regard the UK Independence Party (Ukip) more favourably than they do the Conservatives, Labour and the Liberal Democrats, according to a ComRes poll for the Sunday Mirror and Independent on Sunday .

Nigel Farage's party held a 1% lead over Labour and a 2% lead over the Tories in a poll to find out whether voters had a favourable or unfavourable view of them.

While 27% of the 2,029 people polled viewed Ukip favourably, just 14% held a favourable view of the Liberal Democrats.

Ukip is also the party regarded least unfavourably, with 38% of those polled having an "unfavourable view" of it, compared with 45% for Labour, 49% for the Lib Dems and 50% for the Conservatives.

Read: Ukip councillor blames flooding on same-sex marriage