Gym owner apologises for 'soy makes kids gay' email

The owner of a New Zealand gym franchise has apologised after including an article on soy turning children gay in his email newsletter.

Club Physical chief executive Paul Richards included a link to an article on the conservative World Net Daily website. He said he was "intrigued" by it and wanted to hear other opinions.

The article, by Jim Rutz, claimed that soy was full of estrogen and this was turning boys gay.

Rutz claimed: "Soy is feminising, and commonly leads to a decrease in the size of the penis, sexual confusion and homosexuality."

He added that homosexuality is "always deviant".

LGBT tourist office moves to Soho

London's first lesbian, gay bisexual and trans tourist information office has moved to Soho, the heart of the capital's gay scene.

The tourism office can now be found at the corner of Frith Street and Old Compton Street, above Ku Bar. It was previously situated in Chinatown.

It has a new team of volunteers, along with laptops for tourists to browse the internet for free.

Adam Lake from the LGBT tourist information office said: “Since the launch last autumn we have had a fantastic response from LGBT tourists and residents.

“Over recent months we have forged a great relationship with local businesses which has given us the opportunity to not only give out great advice but we can help people save a lot of money on theatre and club tickets as well as restaurants.”

LGBT tourist information organiser Michelle Cremona added: “London has the biggest and best gay scene in the word and when LGBT tourists come to visit they can often be daunted by the vast choice that the gay scene offers. The LGBT tourist office provides local knowledge from people who know the scene.

Gay groups call on Grammys to condemn 'homophobic' Buju Banton

US gay groups have called on organisers of this weekend's Grammy Awards to denounce nominee Buju Banton.

Banton, whose real name is Mark Anthony Myrie, was nominated in the Best Reggae Album category for Rasta Got Soul. This is his fourth Grammy nomination.

He will not appear at Sunday's ceremony as he is currently in a Florida jail awaiting drug offence charges.

The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) and the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Centre, with more than 20 other groups, took out a full-page ad today in Hollywood showbusiness newspaper Daily Variety to protest at the honour.

The ad, in the form of a letter, said nominating Banton "honours his extraordinary hateful work.", Reuters reported.

Gay MP and blogger in Twitter spat

Labour MP Chris Bryant and Tory blogger Iain Dale had a war of Tweets this afternoon over Tory leader David Cameron.

It started this afternoon during former prime minister Tony Blair's evidence to the Chilcot Inquiry, where he was answering questions on why Britain went to war with Iraq six years ago.

Dale wrote that Blair's smooth performance made Gordon Brown look like a "stumbling amateur", to which Bryant responded that he made Cameron look like a "fake opportunist".

The mudslinging continued as Bryant prodded Dale to agree that Cameron was an opportunist. Dale retorted: "Do you have to be a prick ALL the time? I agreed nothing of the sort. Get back to your desk!"

The proceedings had evidently been eagerly followed by LGBT Labour, who were quick to point to the Tory leader's voting record on gay rights.

Nepal to court gay tourism

Nepal is set to legalise gay marriage later this year and will celebrate the change by promoting the country as the gay tourism capital of Asia.

Last year, the Supreme Court approved same-sex marriage and the government is expected to begin drafting a law allowing in in the coming months.

Next month, a conference will be held to discuss how the country can attract more gay couples.

The country's only out gay MP Sunil Babu Pant, has launched a travel company called Pink Mountain which will offer wedding ceremonies at the base of Everest and processions on elephant-back.

He believes Nepal's economy could see a substantial boost if the country can attract ten per cent of global gay tourism.

Pant, a hero to many gay activists worldwide, told the Daily Telegraph: "Most Asian countries don't welcome gay visitors, so we can have the maximum benefit for the Nepal economy which is fragile after years of war.

He added that the government had a target of increasing the number of tourists from 400,000 to one million in the coming year.

IBM rated most gay-friendly employer for the second time

IT company IBM has been rated the most gay-friendly company to work for by gay rights organisation Stonewall.

The firm was rated best employer in the charity's annual Top 100 Employers List.

It was praised for its "investment in diversity" and Stonewall cited its policy of "intensive" diversity training for line managers.

IBM also won the accolade in 2007 and is the first employer to top the list twice.

UK and Ireland chief executive officer Brendon Riley said his company was "extremely proud" to win the award.

He said: "Since last year’s award, we have done much to re-evaluate and strengthen our LGB strategy as part of our overall commitment to diversity. We’ve looked more closely at the LGB network group – its value proposition and its life-cycle – to ensure that it continues to deliver value, both to the corporation and to its members.

"At IBM, we pride ourselves on delivering a working environment which reflects equality of opportunity and experience for all. Diversity constitutes our character, our identity and ultimately our success – it is in our DNA."

The most improved employer was Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust. It was the best-performing employer in the health sector and was praised for measures such as "theatre-based diversity training", along with raising the rainbow flag for LGBT History Month.

Gay celebrities Tim Gunn and Ellen DeGeneres praised by PETA

Project Runway mentor Tim Gunn and X Factor judge Ellen DeGeneres have been praised for being animal-friendly.

The pair, who are both gay, were named Man and Woman of the Year by charity People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).

Gunn has banned the use of fur in Project Runway, while DeGeneres and her wife Portia di Rossi have frequently spoken about being vegan. The couple had a wedding free of animal products in 2008.

The couple were also honoured with an award from the Humane Society last year.

In a statement, PETA president Ingrid E Newkirk said: “Tim Gunn and Ellen DeGeneres show us that one person really can make a difference in the world by rejecting cruel deeds in favor of compassionate acts

“Their message that animals must be treated kindly and respectfully has reached scores of people, and many of them have changed their buying habits, all because Gunn and DeGeneres spoke up for the voiceless.”

Gay rugby hero Gareth Thomas announced as LGBT History Month patron

Gareth Thomas, the Welsh rugby star who came out last month, has been revealed as the new patron for LGBT History Month.

The former Lions and current Cardiff Blues player said he was "honoured" to have been asked to support the campaign and added that he intended to take a hands-on role.

LGBT History Month is a yearly event held in February and organised by gay education charity Schools Out. It encourages schools to teach pupils about lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans people's contribution to history with events and special lessons.

Thomas said in a statement: "I felt honoured to have been asked to be the patron of LGBT History Month.

"I don't want to just make this a token role, however. I intend to be hands-on within my role, not only to help make a difference to others but to also grow myself."

Spanish judge closes case on death of Stephen Gately

A Spanish court ruled yesterday that gay Boyzone star Stephen Gately died from natural causes, rather than drugs or alcohol.

A forensic report released last month confirmed he had died from an undiagnosed heart condition which led to fluid on the lungs.

Judge Carmen Abrines closed the case yesterday three months after the 33-year-old star died while on holiday in Majorca.

Gately was found to have drunk heavily and smoked cannabis on the night he died but Abrines wrote: "I have concluded that the death was due to natural causes."

She added that there had been no signs of violence at any point during the investigation into his death and said he had been dead for around eight hours before his civil partner Andrew Cowles found his body.

The remaining members of Boyzone are to release their first single and album since his death.

Culture chief receiving hate mail over gay Bible exhibition

The head of Glasgow’s museums and art has described receiving harassment and hate mail after an exhibition on homosexuality and the Bible.

Dr Bridget McConnell, the head of the city's Culture and Sport Glasgow quango, said she had been subjected to a “personal witchhunt" by Christian groups for allowing the art to be shown.

Part of the July exhibition involved a Bible placed on a stand with pens for visitors to write in it. A message said: “If you feel you have been excluded from the Bible, please write your way back into it."

The work was intended to encourage people, especially gays and lesbians, to contribute. However, some visitors scrawled obscenities in it, forcing the museum to place it behind glass.

McConnell told The Times that she and her staff have since been subjected to a campaign of harassment and intimidation by Christians.

She cited almost 2,000 letters, emails and phone calls attacking her and complaining about the exhibition, along with personal visits to her office.

Christian groups have been picketing her office calling her to repent and one website set up by Christian Watch, www.csgwatch.com, calls for her to be removed from her job. On one occasion, police were called when staff claimed they were "seriously intimidated" by protesters.