Tuesday, February 15, 2011

British government reportedly set to introduce full gay marriage equality

The government is expected to announce full marriage equality for gays and lesbians under reforms to marriage laws to be announced later this week. The reported move will end the final major legal discrimination against gays and lesbians in Britain.

According to the Sunday Times, a proposal to end the ban on same sex marriage will be announced by the Liberal Democrat equality minister Lynne Featherstone at the same time as the government announces the time table for civil partnerships to be held in religious buildings.

Civil partnerships were introduced in 2005 and offer gays and lesbian couples similar legal rights to straight married couples. Differences include the grounds for dissolution, some insurance and pension rights and they are not recognised as having the same status as marriage abroad. A consequence of the ban on gay marriage means that a married transgendered person must divorce their partner before being recognised in their new gender. In addition, couples are barred from having any religious elements in the civil partnership ceremony. An amendment the Equality Act by Labour peer Lord Waheed Alli was passed just prior to the election, but the new government delayed the implementation of the changes. Religious insitituions are not forced to host ceremonies if they do not wish to.

Prior to the general election, deputy prime minister and Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg wrote on PinkNews.co.uk: “I support gay marriage. Love is the same, straight or gay, so the civil institution should be the same, too. All couples should be able to make that commitment to one another.” In October, the party adopted full marriage equality including allowing straight couples to have civil partnerships as official party policy. The move was controversially not supported by the gay lobbying organisation Stonewall.

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