Alliance MLA Kieran McCarthy says Health Minister Edwin Poots has spent £100,000 fighting his personal campaigns

THE ALLIANCE Party says Health Minister Edwin Poots must stop using public money to fight his personal campaigns against civil partners adopting and gay men donating blood.

Mr Poots has spent £40,000 on legal costs trying to prevent civil couples from adopting and £17,000 appealing a Court of Appeal decision that ruled against the Minister’s ban.

He has also spent £37,112 on legal costs defending his stance against gay men donating blood.

Alliance health spokesman Kieran McCarthy MLA said: “I am shocked that the Minister can justify spending nearly £100,000 of public money to fund his own personal campaigns. He should stop wasting public money on his own personal vendettas.

“It is surprising that a DUP Minister has sought to oppose laws and rules which are in place in the rest of the UK.

“The ban on civil partners adopting affects both same sex and heterosexual couples.

“There are too many children in our care system for us to be deciding who has the right to apply to adopt a child. It should be about whether a couple can provide a loving and safe home for a child.

“We should also be encouraging more people to donate blood, not telling perfectly eligible people that they are banned from donating blood,” he added.