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23/09/2016
Call For NI To Legalise Equal Marriage
Northern Ireland needs to legalise equal marriage as soon as possible, according to the Alliance Party.
The party made the call after the government of Guernsey recognised the rights of all citizens to be married.
Alliance's MLA Naomi Long said: "The Netherlands was the first country to introduce equal marriage in 2001, and since then more than 20 other countries have taken this progressive step. In 2014 England, Wales and Scotland introduced equal marriage, with the Republic of Ireland following in 2015.
"It is embarrassing to all democrats that Northern Ireland is the only region of these islands to deny a basic human right to its citizens. I believe a majority of people support the introduction of equal marriage. In order to bring this about I am working closely with a cross party group of MLAs who share that commitment and who want to co-operate in bringing a Private Members Bill to the Assembly. Work is well underway with those in the LGBT sector and we now have a draft bill, which we hope can pave the way for a change in the law here."
(CD)
The party made the call after the government of Guernsey recognised the rights of all citizens to be married.
Alliance's MLA Naomi Long said: "The Netherlands was the first country to introduce equal marriage in 2001, and since then more than 20 other countries have taken this progressive step. In 2014 England, Wales and Scotland introduced equal marriage, with the Republic of Ireland following in 2015.
"It is embarrassing to all democrats that Northern Ireland is the only region of these islands to deny a basic human right to its citizens. I believe a majority of people support the introduction of equal marriage. In order to bring this about I am working closely with a cross party group of MLAs who share that commitment and who want to co-operate in bringing a Private Members Bill to the Assembly. Work is well underway with those in the LGBT sector and we now have a draft bill, which we hope can pave the way for a change in the law here."
(CD)
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