/Daniel Andrews opposes Australia Day honour for tennis legend Margaret Court because of her LGBTIQ views – ABC News

Daniel Andrews opposes Australia Day honour for tennis legend Margaret Court because of her LGBTIQ views – ABC News

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews says he does not support former tennis great Margaret Court being recognised with an Australia Day honour.

Key points:

Ms Court is set to be promoted to a Companion of the Order of Australia (AC) — she is currently an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO).

In recent years, Ms Court has come under fire for her views on the LGBTQI community.

“I do not support that. I do not believe that she has views that accord with the vast majority of people across our nation, that see people particularly from the LGBTIQ community as equal and deserving as dignity, respect and safety,” Mr Andrews said.

The Order of Australia has four levels, of which Ms Court’s new status as a “Companion” is highest.

Ms Court won 24 Grand Slam singles titles and was the first female Australian to win Wimbledon in 1963.

Margaret Court, wearing a formal dress and string of pearls, stands beside the Australian Open trophy at a victory ceremony.

The 78-year-old, who is now a reverend in Perth, wrote an open letter in 2017 saying she would boycott Qantas over its support of same-sex marriage.

“I teach what the Bible says about things and you get persecuted for it,” she said in an ABC interview last year.

In 2013, Ms Court wrote a letter to the editor in a newspaper lamenting the birth of Australian tennis player Casey Dellacqua’s child in a same-sex relationship.

“It is with sadness that I see that this baby has seemingly been deprived of a father,” Ms Court wrote.

Her honour was supposed to be revealed next week, but news of the decision broke this morning.

Mr Andrews said he would prefer not to be giving oxygen to Ms Court’s views.

“But I don’t give out those gongs, that’s not a matter for me, that’s for others,” he said.

“You might want to speak to them about why they think those views, which are disgraceful, hurtful and cost lives, should be honoured.”

One of the main stadiums at Melbourne Park — home of the Australian Open — is named in her honour.

Mr Andrews said the name of Margaret Court Arena was a matter for other people.

“I’m sick of talking about that person every summer,” he said.

“I’m sick of having this discussion in one form or another, every single summer.”