London
Britain’s opposition Conservative Party embraced its first openly gay member of Parliament this week. After Alan Duncan, the party’s foreign-affairs spokesman, outed himself to the London Times, party leader Iain Duncan Smith sent him a letter offering him “personal support” and praising his honesty. Homosexuality has been a divisive issue within the Conservative Party. Duncan Smith only won the party leadership last year, after top contender Michael Portillo was pilloried in the press for having had a gay affair in the past. Several Labour Party members of Parliament are openly gay, but every Tory who has ever been outed has lost his seat.
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