Daniel Radcliffe withdraws support for Liberal Democrats

The 'Harry Potter' star says Nick Clegg has become a 'whipping boy' for Conservatives

Daniel Radcliffe has withdrawn his support for the Liberal Democrats.

The Harry Potter star, who was one of the party’s most high-profile celebrity backers ahead of the last general election, described the party leader and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg as a “whipping boy” for the Conservatives and pledged support instead for the “genuinely left-wing” Labour leader Ed Miliband.

In December, fellow Hollywood A-lister Colin Firth also ended his endorsement of the party.

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Radcliffe made the comments in the new issue of Attitude magazine, the same place where he declared his support for Clegg in 2009.

Asked if he was satisfied with Clegg’s performance in the coalition government, Radcliffe said: “No, of course not. Nick Clegg asked to meet me after that Attitude interview and we talked about issues such as gay rights and faith schools.

“I was initially supportive. For me it was good that the Lib Dems would be fighting our corner. But he has become a whipping boy and it seems to me that he has been totally used by the Tories – anything they don’t want badly reflected on them they reflect on to him.”

Radcliffe, who is estimated to have amassed a £30 million fortune, added that he is happy to be taxed heavily: “I think, if you make a lot more money than most people – like I do – you should pay more tax and subsidise people who work just as hard as you, but don’t earn as much. From what I’ve seen of Ed Miliband, I really like him and he speaks for what I believe in. I think he’s genuine, genuinely left-wing, and will act as such if he gets in.”

The actor, who is straight, also called for gay marriage and relationship education in schools covering both gay and straight relationships, adding: “I’m not religious, I’m an atheist, and a militant atheist when religion starts impacting on legislation. We need sex education in schools.”

You can watch a trailer for Radcliffe’s new film The Woman In Black below.

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