by Tony Rucinski, Coalition for Marriage
Felix Ngole has been fighting for over ten years. His offence? A Facebook post saying he believes marriage is between a man and a woman. I sat down with Felix again this week to hear where his landmark case stands – and what he told me should concern every one of us. Watch the full interview here:
In 2022, mental health charity Touchstone Leeds offered Ngole a social work post at Wakefield Hospital. He scored the highest marks of any candidate on their equality and diversity assessment. Weeks later, a senior figure discovered his beliefs online and withdrew the offer without a word. A second interview followed, but Touchstone ultimately refused to reinstate the post.
In February this year, the Employment Appeal Tribunal ruled that withdrawing the offer was direct discrimination. This builds on the Court of Appeal’s ruling in Higgs v Farmor’s School.
But key questions remain unresolved – above all, whether an employer can demand “assurances” about a job applicant’s conduct simply because it discovers they hold biblical beliefs about marriage. Ngole and the Christian Legal Centre intend to take those questions to the Court of Appeal.
“They’re not targeting me for hating anyone or for harming anyone”, Ngole says. It’s because “I believe in the Bible”.