A CAMBRIDGESHIRE UKIP activist has insisted that the “silent majority” are against gay marriage and called for a referendum on the issue.

Paul Bullen, UKIP’s Eastern Counties committee member for Cambridgeshire, spoke out as MPs prepare to vote on legalising gay weddings tomorrow.

A number of Conservative MPs are likely to oppose The Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill - but Mr Bullen said it was a decision that should not be made by politicians.

“We (UKIP) firmly believe that the people should make such choices,” said Mr Bullen, who finished third in the election to become Cambridgeshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner in November.

“This is not a choice for MPs to make, they don’t really know what the people want.

“They have decided they know best. They do not believe that the British people are capable of making their own decisions. Why should our politicians dictate to the people?”

Mr Bullen said he would like to see the Government “concentrating on the economy rather than wasting Parliamentary time on other matters”.

He said: “The silent majority are against gay marriage - it is the vocal minority that are for it.

“I’m a Christian and I believe that a marriage is performed in church between a man and a woman - but that’s my personal opinion.

“I’m quite happy to go with it (gay marriage) provided that the people have had the chance to vote for or against it.”

Mr Bullen, who is chairman of UKIP’s Huntingdonshire and South Cambridgeshire branch, plans to stand for election to Cambridgeshire County Council in May.

The Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill would allow couples who had previously entered into civil partnerships to convert their relationship into a marriage.

Prime Minister David Cameron has backed the bill - but he is facing opposition from within his own party.