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Gay marriages and straight civil partnerships Gay marriages and straight civil partnerships
(4 months later)
Why is the government time-wasting over extending civil partnerships to opposite-sex couples (Report, 21 May)? Why this obsession with marriage at the expense of – to some of us – the much more enlightened civil partnership? With successive governments promoting legally formalised relationships – and shamefully continuing to discriminate against cohabiting couples and their children in areas such as pensions, inheritance tax and separation rights – surely this is a golden opportunity to attract new recruits? My partner and I are appalled that, to fully protect our and, most important, our children's future financial security, we may have no option other than to proceed with a ceremony (marriage) which contradicts our strongly held beliefs. While marriage isn't for me, I welcome its long overdue extension to same-sex couples. However, to continue to exclude opposite-sex couples from civil partnerships, or to do away with this option altogether, would be indefensible.
Name and address supplied		Why is the government time-wasting over extending civil partnerships to opposite-sex couples (Report, 21 May)? Why this obsession with marriage at the expense of – to some of us – the much more enlightened civil partnership? With successive governments promoting legally formalised relationships – and shamefully continuing to discriminate against cohabiting couples and their children in areas such as pensions, inheritance tax and separation rights – surely this is a golden opportunity to attract new recruits? My partner and I are appalled that, to fully protect our and, most important, our children's future financial security, we may have no option other than to proceed with a ceremony (marriage) which contradicts our strongly held beliefs. While marriage isn't for me, I welcome its long overdue extension to same-sex couples. However, to continue to exclude opposite-sex couples from civil partnerships, or to do away with this option altogether, would be indefensible.
Name and address supplied
• There is surely a simple solution to the gay marriage-civil partnership issue. It is to legalise gay marriage and abolish civil partnerships, which are only marriages by another name. That way all people who wish to be coupled, whether by religious marriage in a church or civil marriage in a registry office, will be treated equally.
Peter Lawrence
Keele, Staffordshire 		• There is surely a simple solution to the gay marriage-civil partnership issue. It is to legalise gay marriage and abolish civil partnerships, which are only marriages by another name. That way all people who wish to be coupled, whether by religious marriage in a church or civil marriage in a registry office, will be treated equally.
Peter Lawrence
Keele, Staffordshire
• At the time of the Commons debate on equal marriage and as the bill passes to the House of Lords, we, as faith groups, wish to reiterate our commitment to same-sex marriage. For us, the Movement for Reform Judaism, Quakers in Britain and the Unitarian and Free Christian Churches, marriage is not a mere civil contract, but a religious act. While we don't seek to impose this on anyone, for us this is a matter of religious freedom. We ask that any legislation will ensure we are free to conduct same-sex marriage in our places of worship.
Mark Goldsmith Movement for Reform Judaism, Paul Parker Quakers in Britain, Derek McAuley General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches		• At the time of the Commons debate on equal marriage and as the bill passes to the House of Lords, we, as faith groups, wish to reiterate our commitment to same-sex marriage. For us, the Movement for Reform Judaism, Quakers in Britain and the Unitarian and Free Christian Churches, marriage is not a mere civil contract, but a religious act. While we don't seek to impose this on anyone, for us this is a matter of religious freedom. We ask that any legislation will ensure we are free to conduct same-sex marriage in our places of worship.
Mark Goldsmith Movement for Reform Judaism, Paul Parker Quakers in Britain, Derek McAuley General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches
• Michael Ashcroft feels that the David Cameron's aspirations are being constrained in coalition and hopes the Conservatives will be "elected in two years' time in rather greater numbers to implement a Tory manifesto in full". He cites opposition to the same-sex marriage bill as "distracting ourselves from what matters". True conservatives believe that redefining the ancient, benign institution of marriage between complementary opposites is indeed an unfortunate distraction from urgent priorities. They also realise that it would irreparably destabilise the main foundation of society.
Chris Scott
Coulsdon, Surrey		• Michael Ashcroft feels that the David Cameron's aspirations are being constrained in coalition and hopes the Conservatives will be "elected in two years' time in rather greater numbers to implement a Tory manifesto in full". He cites opposition to the same-sex marriage bill as "distracting ourselves from what matters". True conservatives believe that redefining the ancient, benign institution of marriage between complementary opposites is indeed an unfortunate distraction from urgent priorities. They also realise that it would irreparably destabilise the main foundation of society.
Chris Scott
Coulsdon, Surrey
• The gay marriage debate is surely getting to rival the Schleswig-Holstein question in opacity. Is there a legal expert on hand to distinguish between the effects of a civil marriage and a civil partnership? Will mosques be legally obliged to conduct religious ceremonies for gays? Or is the real purpose of all this to distract from the failure of the government's economic policy?
Jenny Tillyard
Seaford, East Sussex		• The gay marriage debate is surely getting to rival the Schleswig-Holstein question in opacity. Is there a legal expert on hand to distinguish between the effects of a civil marriage and a civil partnership? Will mosques be legally obliged to conduct religious ceremonies for gays? Or is the real purpose of all this to distract from the failure of the government's economic policy?
Jenny Tillyard
Seaford, East Sussex
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