Same-sex Marriage Consultation in England and Wales
On 17 September 2011, at the Liberal Democrat party conference, Lynne Featherstone announced that the government would launch a consultation in March 2012 on how to implement equal civil marriage for same-sex couples with the intention of any legislative changes being made by the next general election. The Prime Minister's Office let it be known that David Cameron had personally intervened in favour of legalising same-sex unions, and on 5th October 2011 the Conservative Party Conference applauded Cameron's support for gay marriage in his Leader's Speech.
On 12 March 2012, the government launched its consultation on equal civil marriage in England and Wales. The government's proposals are:
- to enable same-sex couples to have a civil marriage i.e. only civil ceremonies in a register office or approved premises (like a hotel);
- to make no changes to religious marriages. This will continue to only be legally possible between a man and a woman;
- to retain civil partnerships for same-sex couples and allow couples already in a civil partnership to convert this into a marriage;
- to continue to permit civil partnership registrations on religious premises as is currently possible i.e. on a voluntary basis for faith groups and with no religious content; and
- to allow individuals to be able legally to change their gender without having to end their marriage.
Read more about this topic: Same-sex Marriage In The United Kingdom
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