Well done to United Reformed Church on Civil Partnerships for Same Sex Couples

Yesterday the General Assembly of the United Reformed Church (URC) voted to allow their churches, if they wish, to host civil partnership ceremonies for same sex couples. 

This is a significant decision by the URC and is another step forward towards full inclusion of LGBT people within the churches. This goes a long way to breaking down barriers between people of faith and the LGBT community. Unitarians will wholeheartedly welcome the decision. 

For one of the mainstream denominations, with close connections with other large nonconformist churches, the Baptists and the Methodists, and well as the Church of England, to take such a courageous decision is encouraging.

We have a common historic heritage with the URC going back to the Great Ejection in 1662, whose 350th anniveresary we are marking this year. It is good to see that the shared values of religious freedom and tolerance led us to similar decisions. 

I have already been in touch with the URC to see if they will join the four groups who have been working closely on this issue - ourselves in the Unitarian and Free Christian Churches, the Quakers, Liberal Judaism and the Movement for Reform Judaism - to address some of the impediments that are currently limiting implementation of this provision of the Equality Act. It is clear that the fees for registration charged by some local authorities are excessive and that the guidance from central Government is not always reflected in local decision-making. With this decision by a much larger denomination we hope that we can strengthen the pressure to ensure these concerns are addressed”.

In 2008 the Unitarian General Assembly urged the Government to allow civil partnerships in religious premises and worked to achieve legislative change that came into force in December 2011. Cross Unitarian Chapel in Manchester was the first religious premises in England and Wales to be registered and the first ceremony was hosted at Ullet Road Unitarian Church in Liverpool in May 2012.

Attempt to Revoke Civil Partnership in Religious Premises Regulations

I am disappointed and saddened at the last minute attempt that will be made in the House of Lords on 8 December 2011 by Baroness O’Cathain (see below) to revoke the regulations to allow civil partnership registration in religious premises and would urge its clear rejection. This appears to be a cynical effort to derail the measure on rather spurious grounds.

The amendment to the Equality Bill permitting registration originated in the House of Lords and was passed with wide support. The matter of churches being “compelled” to register was dealt with by Section 202 which stated that “nothing in this Act places an obligation on religious organisations to host civil partnership registrations if they do not wish to do so”. This is reinforced in the regulations. Churches are no more obliged to enable civil partnerships to be registered on their premises  than hotels or other commercial premises.

British Unitarian and Free Christians have welcomed this opportunity to recognise in public, and support, a commitment between two individuals to each other. I am sure we will be amongst the first to register some of our premises and have registration ceremonies. This is entirely a local decision for each congregation reflecting our commitment to congregational autonomy and democratic governance as we made clear in our submission during to the consultation by the Equality Office.

Compulsion in matters of religion goes against our long history of struggle for our religious freedom. We are confident that the legislation offers the protection to those churches who hold a differing view on this issue and do not wish to register their premises for this purpose. They have that freedom.

Unitarian congregations must not be prevented at this late stage in seeking to take forward our own sincerely held views and to offer same sex couples the opportunity to register their civil partnership”  

House of Lords Future Business

Thursday 8 December at 11.00am

†Marriages and Civil Partnerships (Approved Premises) (Amendment) Regulations 2011 (SI 2011/2661) Baroness O’Cathain to move that a Humble Address be presented to Her Majesty praying that the Regulations, laid before the House on 8 November, be annulled on the grounds that they do not fulfil the Government’s pledge to protect properly faith groups from being compelled to register civil partnerships where it is against their beliefs. 43rd Report from the Merits Committee

Love, Civil Partnerships and Marriage

I spoke on "Love, Civil Partnership and Marriage" at the GMB (General and Municipal Boilermakers) Trade Union "Shout!" fringe meeting prior to the Trades Union Council (TUC) LGBT Conference earlier this week. The General Assembly works with several trade unions as part of the Cutting Edge Consortium.

I explained the background to Unitarian support for equal rights for LGBT people arising from our historic commitment to civil and religious liberty.

I said "Love” in all its diversity cannot be limited to institutional arrangements about marriage and civil partnerships. I recognise that for many LGBT people these are not for them. But equal marriage rights does make a statement about society’s acceptance of equality for LGBT people more generally.

In 2008 Unitarians asked the Government to allow Civil Partnerships on religious premises little knowing that this would soon be raised as a real possibility. We were pleased to support Lord Alli’s amendment to the Equality Bill along with our close friends in the Quakers, Liberal Judaism and the MCC. This support according to Stonewall made a real difference. We have always been open to couples rejected elsewhere; such as mixed faith weddings and of divorcees; and for those who want to have a more personalised service. We know that many gay people of faith have wanted this every important event in their lives to be recognised in a place that is significant to them and some of our Ministers carried out same sex blessings.

As for the future Lynne Featherstone MP, Minister for Equality, has launched a opportunity to debate same sex civil marriage and to “Work with all those who have an interest in equal civil marriage and partnerships, on how legislation can develop.” (July 2011)

The history of marriage reform in this country is one of the Church of England slowly giving up its monopoly. Unitarians and other dissenters, apart from Quakers and Jews, had to marry in the CoE until 1837.

In Scotland a recent paper by the Scottish Human Rights Commission had the rather pointed title “Ending the Segregation of same sex couples and transgender people”. The SNP Government is committed to consulting on the issue and the First Minister is on record as supporting equal marriage.

As the mainstream Churches oppose civil partnerships on their premises they will undoubtedly oppose any legislation on same sex marriage. They will do this because marriage has always been central to the Church of England’s role as national Church. They and other churches (including Unitarians) carry out what are state functions in many other countries; marriage in church is not an add on to a civil ceremony; it is legally equivalent and came before civil marriage. The challenge will be that same sex civil marriage will redefine what marriage is and raise the issue of same sex religious marriage. We and the Quakers and Liberal Jews will, of course, argue for this seeking real equality.

The religion and society thinktank Ekklesia, which backs reform, has suggested that the civil and religious aspects of weddings should be separated, freeing the state to offer marriage and partnership rights to all, and enabling various religious bodies to decide independently which relationships they wish to bless without preventing others from acting differently. This may be a way forward but represents a major change to marriage law.

There was a vigorous discussion in the forty strong audience. Issues affecting trans people were raised and this is something that I had not addressed and about which I have much to learn. The relationship between gender reassignment and marriage law in complex and very different to those affecting LGB people. We also had a good debate on what should be the tactics; seek to achieve civil marriage law recognising that religious bodies will oppose change or try to achieve a permissive right for those faith bodies who wish to undertake same sex marriages or alternatively seek major marriage law reform more generally.

Civil Partnerships on Religious Premises

Yesterday was the deadline for submissions to the Government's Equality Office on the consultation paper on civil partnerships on religious premises.

The General Assembly has submitted a detailed response to the list of questions. The focus is on implementation not the principles.

We supported the legislative change in the Equality Act 2010 allowing for registration and the subsequent publication of the consultation document.

There are serious concerns about the levels of fees that may be required and some of the practical details.

I have been pleased to work with other like-minded organisations, such as the Quakers, Trades Union Congress and Stonewall, in discussing our different approaches and then sharing copies of responses. We didn't always agree but the dialogue was important and I am sure we can build upon it as implementation proceeds.

TIMETABLE FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF CIVIL PARTNERSHIP REGISTRATIONS IN RELIGIOUS PREMISES

At last there is light at the end the tunnel with progress with civil partnerships in religious premises. The timetable should see the first applications for registration by the end of 2011. The Government's Equalities Office have published a consultation paper for the implementation of civil partnership registration in religious premises accompanied by a written Ministerial Statement. This is an important milestone on the journey to equality. The "devil is in the detail" and the consultation paper raises lots of questions. Our task must be to ensure that the implementaton process is simple and at reasonable cost for congregations. The deadline for response is 23 June 2011. There is already active opposition to this measure and we should not assume this will go away. Unitarians have welcomed heterosexual couples from a range of backgrounds who come to us seeking a marriage ceremony that reflects their own personal beliefs rather than having to go along with restrictive ancient rites . Same sex couples wishing to celebrate a civil partnership will have the same flexibility. The debate about the wider issue of marriage equality has only just begun. This change only applies to England and Wales and not Scotland and Northern Ireland.