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Civil unions bill brings legal clarity to same sex couples

Issued : Wednesday 21 February, 2007

I welcome the opportunity to address the Dáil on this Labour Party Civil Unions Bill and I would like to thank my colleague Brendan Howlin for allowing me the time to speak. I am strongly in favour of this Bill which is a necessary and important piece of legislation.

The purpose of this Bill is to provide legislation to provide same sex couples with the same basic rights and duties as are available to married couples.

This Bill is about equality for same sex couples. It is about inclusiveness. It is not a threat to the institution of marriage as we know it. The desire of same sex couples/persons to have recognition of their union is proof of the opposite. They, like their heterosexual fellow citizens actively want status similar to that of marriage. It is an extension of marriage.

Indeed, countries at the cutting edge of equality and diversity have recognised that our definition of marriage, "the voluntary union for life of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others", can be adopted in modern society to include a diversity of family forms. South Africa, for example, in its new constitution, has a gender neutral approach to marriage.

The extension of rights will amount to equality of provision for same sex couples North and South of this island in compliance with our obligations under the Good Friday Agreement. Rather than a situation where a same sex couple can enter a civil union in Tyrone but not in Donegal, we want equality for all on this island.

In particular, and as Spokesperson on Health, I welcome the legal clarity that this Bill brings to same sex couples in hospital situations where a long term partner may not have been given the opportunity to act in the same way as a spouse. Life partners, in most troubling and traumatic times where health is at risk, should be allowed to act on behalf of their partner and be recognised as the life partners that they are.

This Bill would bring to end many of the routine forms of institutionalised discrimination that exist in our society and which impinge on in a very real way on people's lives.

I also welcome the provision for pre nuptial agreements.

I welcome very much the extension of adoption rights to same sex couples. I also welcome that, as in any adoption, the interests of the child are paramount. Section 8 of this Bill should be commended for its "child focused" provisions. The manner in which children's welfare is provided protection here would serve as a good legislative model for the protection of the welfare of all children. The Labour Party has always called for the equality of all children regardless of martial status of parents, in all family forms, not matter what union - same sex or not.

As regards children of same sex couples, protection of the child is to the forefront, sexual orientation of parent is not relevant. There is maximum protection to the child here, there are plenty of safeguards. This is a model for all children's rights; these protections should be rights for all children of all couples.

Section 9 of this bills should be welcomed as it provides for the right of same sex couples to get barring orders if needs be. This provision means that the protection of barring orders, an unfortunate necessity for some persons, will be extended to couples living together in situations akin to man and wife.

Despite the rhetoric of this government, their record for same sex couples is one of discrimination. For example, section 19 of the Social Welfare (Misc Provisions) Act 2004 involving social welfare provisions such as the National Fuel Scheme and Free Travel was restricted as a result of a decision by the Equality Tribunal. The Equality Tribunal recognised that under the then existing legislation that same sex couples were entitled to apply for fuel schemes and free travel.

Section 19 was brought in to restrict this to married couples only. It was specifically brought in because of an equality case won by a same sex couple in the Equality Tribunal. This section, by this Government, reversed that decision and has had the effect of excluding same sex couples from these welfare provisions. A petty, mean, discriminatory thing to do and it was done by this government. The FF/PD's record in government has increased inequality for long term partners. Let's face it; those availing of these schemes, on the whole, would be the elderly and most the vulnerable in our society. And they were deliberately let down by this government in a shameful penny pinching act.

I welcome section 9 of this Labour Party Bill which deals with administrative schemes such as this and confers the same rights and entitlements to elderly same sex couples, rights that they should be entitled to.