• "Deep strain of homophobia" remains, says Culture Secretary • Poll shows rising gay Conservative support

The Culture Secretary Ben Bradshaw has warned that “a deep strain of homophobia still exists on the Conservative benches”.

Speaking after a poll showed rising gay support for the Tories, Bradshaw, one of the first openly gay MPs, said that the party’s record on the issue meant they could not be trusted.

The gay Foreign Office minister Chris Bryant, echoed his words. “If gays vote Tory they will rue the day very soon,” he said.

In response the Tories accused Labour of “name calling” and insisted that no section of the party supported discrimination.

Earlier this week David Cameron attempted to make amends for his party’s historically poor relations with the gay community by apologising for Section 28. Speaking at a gay pride event, the Conservative leader admitted that the 1988 law, which banned local authorities from “promoting” homosexuality, had been “offensive” and wrong.

“I am sorry for Section 28. We got it wrong. It was an emotional issue. I hope you can forgive us,” he said. He added that the Conservatives were “bound to have” the first gay Prime Minister.

His address was hailed by many gay rights activists as a final repudiation of Conservative homophobia. Ben Summerskill, the chief executive of Stonewall, described Cameron’s speech as “historic”. “We have heard the leader of the Conservative party say the words 'section 28' and 'sorry',” he said.

New research by Jake, a networking community for gay men, has revealed that 38 per cent of the group’s members plan to vote Conservative at the next election. Labour trailed behind the Liberal Democrats in third place, winning the support of only 20 per cent of members.

Summerskill said that research “seems to indicate there is a significant swing to the Conservative Party”, adding: “It must be very reassuring for the Conservative Party”.

Worryingly for Labour, the party’s low rating came in spite of the fact that 86.6 per cent of participants believed Labour had achieved the most for gay people. The findings suggest that many gay voters believe that the government's reforms, including the introduction of civil partnerships, the repeal of Section 28 and the legalisation of gay adoption, have gone far enough.

Bradshaw urged gay voters to scrutinise the Conservatives’ voting record more closely. He said: “I hope that people in the lesbian, gay and transgender community will closely examine the Conservatives' record on this and David Cameron's record in particular, which is not good.”

But Baroness Warsi, the shadow minister for community cohesion, strongly rejected his claims. She said: "On the day that the prime minister said that he did not approve of personal attacks in politics it would appear that members of the Labour Party failed to heed his message. It is a shame that Labour politicians cannot engage on the policy issues around equality and instead revert to name calling.

"David Cameron and the Conservatives Party have made clear they do not believe that anybody should be disadvantaged on the grounds of gender, race, religion or sexual orientation."

On Saturday in London, Sarah Brown will join the gay pride march, becoming the first prime minister's wife to do so. Gordon Brown will not be marching due to security concerns but he is hosting a reception for gays rights campaigners later that evening.

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