kd lang has criticised Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper because of his refusal to attend the World Outgames, a international sporting event expected to attract in the region of 13,000 gay, bisexual and transgendered athletes, and which is set to take place at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal.
The singer, who will perform at the event's opening ceremony, told reporters: "It's a sad statement that the national leader of a country that's one of the most progressive countries in the world chooses to support intolerance. It's our job to see that as an unfortunate ignorance, rather than as a statement against us. It's just that he hasn't got there in his heart."
Opposition leaders will be at the event, making the premier's absence more notable, but a spokesman for Harper denied that there was any political significance in the PM's decision not to attend, saying: "The Prime Minister receives hundred of invitations to attend several events at the same time. He simply can't be everywhere at the same time."