he hasn't changed his beliefs, and doesn't agree with homosexual acts. This apology came only one week after his wife launched a political party Vision NZ (then called Coalition New Zealand). Only one month before the apology Brian had also used the hashtag on social media #crybabygays while showing support for Australian rugby league player Israel Folau, who among other things said how hell awaited gay people. Views on women in politics Tamaki regards the perceived lack of male leadership in New Zealand, including the leadership over one's family, as "the work of the devil". He claims that Parliament reflects this alleged lack of male leadership. In his autobiography he defends his attitude towards women by pointing to the role of his wife Pastor Hannah Tamaki in the Destiny Church organisation, and also says "God is very specific about the role and function of men". Trans woman MP Georgina Beyer confronted Tamaki at the "Enough is Enough" protest in Wellington in August 2004, charging "Your hatred is totally intolerable". Beyer also compared Tamaki to despots like Robert Mugabe in a 3 News interview. Views on Islam Following the Christchurch mosque shootings in March 2019, Brian Tamaki issued a Tweet protesting at Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern's decision to hold an Islamic call to prayer ahead of the two minutes of silence being held for the victims of the Christchurch shootings on 22 March 2019. Tamaki also made remarks attacking Islam as a "false religion" and falsely claiming that Christianity was the national religion of New Zealand. He called removing Jesus Christ out of parliamentary prayer "a slap in the face" to "generations of Christians". Responses to the COVID-19 pandemic During the COVID-19 pandemic in New Zealand, Tamaki courted media attention and controversy in mid-March 2020 when he announced that Destiny Church would not be closing their churches in response to Government directives discouraging gatherings of more than 100 people. Tamaki stated that he was "not about to let a filthy virus scare us out of having church. To equate fear with common sense is nonsense." He claimed that "... very ignorant Kiwis don't even realise their rights have been stolen". Tamaki's remarks were criticised by infectious diseases expert Siouxsie Wiles for undermining COVID-19 containment efforts." While Destiny Church held services on 22 March, they subsequently shifted to online services to comply with national lockdown restrictions. In mid-2020, Tamaki criticized the Government's