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| Prisons Minister Crispin Blunt separates from wife |
TORY Prisons Minister Crispin Blunt has issued a short statement announcing he has separated from his wife and is "coming to terms with his homosexuality".
He said there was nobody else involved and appealed for his family’s privacy to be respected.
In a statement, his office said: “Crispin Blunt wishes to make it known that
he has separated from his wife Victoria.
“He decided to come to terms with his homosexuality and explained the position
to his family. The consequence is this separation.
“There is no third party involvement, but this is difficult for his immediate
and wider family and he hopes for understanding and support for them.
“The family do not wish to make any further public comment and hope that their
privacy will be respected as they deal with these difficult private issues.”
Mr Blunt, 50, has been the Conservative MP for Reigate since 1997. He and his
wife were married in 1990 and have one son and one daughter.
The MP became a Parliamentary under secretary of state at the Ministry of
Justice in May following the formation of the Tory-Liberal Democrat coalition
Government.
But he has already built a reputation for being gaffe-prone.
He was slapped down by Downing Street last month after saying he was lifting a
ban on arts events like comedy workshops and fancy dress parties.
Number 10 overruled him the following day, ordering that there would be no such
parties.
UPDATE:
In 2002 when Tory MP Alan Duncan admitted he was gay, Tony Collinson, former chairman of the 1,400-strong Reigate Conservative Association, led the chorus of disapproval:
"I would not be happy if we had a gay candidate here - I would always go for a candidate who had a normal background," he said. "Our current MP [Conservative Crispin Blunt; majority 8,000] is happily married with two children."
Oops...
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