Ashers Bakery, the Christian-owned company at the heart of the 'gay cake' case, will have their case heard at the UK's top court.

The Supreme Court has agreed to hear the appeal in October after the Belfast-based company refused to make a cake with the slogan 'Support Gay Marriage' on it.

Challenged by the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland (ECNI), Ashers was found to have unlawfully discriminated against gay rights activist Gareth Lee on grounds of sexual orientation and religious belief or political opinion when it turned down his order for the campaign cake.

The family-run business was ordered to pay £500 in damages by a Northern Irish county – a decision that was later upheld by the Court of Appeal in Belfast in December 2016.

Now escalated to the UK's top court, the case has challenged the tension between equality laws and religious freedom with a last minute intervention by Northern Ireland attorney general suggesting the case could raise questions about the legitimacy of Northern Ireland's legislation.

Despite loosing the discrimination case, Ashers have seen their record profits following the high-profile case. The company, which has several outlets across Northern Ireland, accumulated profits of £1.5 million for 2016, up from £1.3 million the previous year. 

Ashers' general manager Daniel McArthur welcomed the case's escalation and said: 'The fact that the Supreme Court is willing to hear arguments is very encouraging and reflects the importance of the issues and the high-profile nature of the case.'

The court will hold a preliminary session over two days to assess the arguments before deciding whether to grant a full appeal hearing.

A spokeman for The Christian Institute, a campaign group supporting Ashers, hailed it as an 'important development'.

Simon Calvert said: 'This is a vitally important case. The ruling in the Belfast court undermines democratic freedom. It undermines religious freedom. It undermines free speech.'