Karen McVeigh
The Guardian – UK
Ministers are expected to announce plans allowing same-sex couples to register civil partnerships in church, removing a key legal distinction between the ceremony and marriage.
The move, likely to be announced by Lynne Featherstone, the equalities minister, would lift the ban on civil partnerships taking place in religious settings in England and Wales. Same-sex couples are currently not allowed to use hymns or Bible readings in civil ceremonies, but it is unclear whether this would change or whether civil partnership ceremonies in places of worship could formally be described as marriages.
The Home Office said: “The government is currently considering what the next stage should be for civil partnerships, including how some religious organisations can allow same-sex couples to register their relationship in a religious setting if they wish to do so.”
The move, likely to come as early as next year, would mean historic reforms of marriage laws, according to newspaper reports over the weekend. However, it will cause ructions among churches strongly opposed to formal gay unions. Click here to read more.
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