Rev backs brothels motion (From Western Telegraph)

Rev backs brothels motion

A Haverfordwest minister and a member of the town council raised eyebrows at the weekend when he supported a Plaid Cymru call for brothels to be licensed.

The Rev Christopher Gillham of Tabernacle Chapel, who is an active member of Plaid Cymru spoke on the motion at the party's annual conference at Llandudno on Saturday.

But, he said on Monday, his action is not at odds with his Christian Ministry.

"There was a motion on the agenda and, as I made clear when I spoke on it, I was not discussing the moral issue one way or another. Neither was the motion on moral grounds. It was purely a matter of public health and safety.

"My view was that prostitution has gone on for centuries and it is not going to be easily stamped out. It would be far wiser for prostitutes themselves, and indeed for people who might be picked up by kerb crawlers, to have the matter under control so that the health of prostitutes could be checked and those nasty sexual diseases would not be transmitted. And also to keep prostitutes out of the control of the criminals."

The Rev Gilham did not feel his stance would cause any concern to his congregation at Tabernacle Church, Haverfordwest.

"If I had come out and said prostitution is a thoroughly good idea morally, then they would have every reason to feel concerned. But that is not the case," he said.