Ian "H" Watkins has revealed that Steps recently turned down a gig in Dubai as the contract said that there should be "no mention of sexuality".
The pop group, which rose to fame in the 1990s, performed a concert in the United Arab Emirates in 2018 and Watkins said that the country's laws have changed since then and are a lot more "archaic" now.
Homosexuality is illegal in the United Arab Emirates.
He spoke to the PA news agency at the Attitude Pride Awards 2023, which celebrates LGBT+ people who have positively impacted the community.
Watkins said: "Recently, we have just turned down a gig in the Emirates in Dubai, specifically, because of their human rights policies and specifically their laws on LGBTQ+ people.
"We got offered a very lovely sum of money, but, in the contract, it did say 'no mention of sexuality' and for me, as a gay man, I did say 'that doesn’t sit well with me. I’m not going to be part of that’.
"I did say to the rest of the gang, 'You’re welcome to do that without me.'"
He continued, "I think, if we took a stand and did our show, as it was, I, specifically would be in danger.
"I would go to jail, we would absolutely be in contempt of the government.
"But we can do our bit and we will actually go up and say, ‘no, we’re not doing that’, and that creates even more noise."
His Steps bandmate Claire Richards discussed the group's decision to turn down the gig in Dubai, saying, "It was a no brainer.
"It’s absolutely what we stand for as a band and all of us support H to the hilt, it’s not even a question.
"I mean, there’s an argument to say we could have gone. A lot of people say ‘go and fly the flag’ and do it that way but that’s giving oxygen to it."
Steps came together following an advert in The Stage entertainment magazine in 1997 looking for a new band.
The fivesome, best known for hits like One for Sorrow, 5, 6, 7, 8 and a cover version of the BeeGees' Tragedy, celebrated 20 years since their formation with a comeback album and UK tour in 2017.
Source: Press Association
