A teacher who refused to ‘call a boy a girl’ in a bitter trans row has been slapped with a £195,000 fine for ignoring a court order to stay away from his former school.
Enoch Burke, a secondary school teacher from Castlebar, Co Mayo, has already racked up £68,500 in previous fines – and his latest punishment comes as the court grows increasingly frustrated with his defiance.
In court yesterday, Mr Justice David Nolan hiked Burke’s daily penalty from £1,200 to £1,700 for every day he continues to remain in contempt.
But he stopped short of sending the teacher back to jail for a fourth time – saying that prison was ‘exactly what Mr Burke wanted’.
‘I believe that by locking him up it is only giving fuel to his perverted sense of justice,’ the judge said. This comment immediately drew sharp criticism from the Burke family.
