B&B-owners should not be allowed to refuse accommodation to people on the basis of their sexuality, Anglican respondents to a survey believe, writes Madeleine Davies.

The online YouGov survey of 4018 people, designed by Professor Linda Woodhead of Lancaster University, found that, overall, 57 per cent thought that B&B-owners should not be able to refuse on this basis. A third thought that they should. Among Anglicans, 52 per cent thought that they should not, and 41 per cent thought that they should.

The survey was released on Tuesday, shortly before the case of Peter and Hazelmary Bull was due to be heard at the Supreme Court. In 2011, a county-court judge ruled that Mr and Mrs Bull had acted unlawfully ( News, 21 January, 2011) when they refused to give a double room to a gay couple. They were ordered to pay the claimants £3600 in damages. The decision was upheld by the Court of Appeal last year (News, 17 February 2012).

Almost half (48 per cent) thought that it was wrong that the Bulls had been ordered to pay damages; 40 per cent said that it was right.