Church 'may have to offer gay weddings' if Cameron's plans
given go-ahead
Modernisation:
David Cameron's plan to allow gay marriage would mean the Church of England is
no longer sheltered from equality laws
Same-sex
couples will be able to have church weddings if
David Cameron goes ahead with plans to allow gay marriage, the Church of
England indicated yesterday.
Its lawyers said that weddings will have to be offered to
same-sex couples under any scheme to open the full privileges and title of
marriage to gays and
lesbians.
They suggested that if same-sex couples could marry the
Church would no longer be sheltered from equality laws that forbid it from
discriminating against homosexuals.
The admission was made by officials in a paper on the impact
of new civil
partnership regulations.
The rules, which
come into effect on Monday, mean that, for the first time,
churches would in theory be able to host same-sex civil partnership
registration ceremonies.
The CofE maintains that because it has never offered civil
partnership ceremonies it cannot be forced to start doing so under the new
rules.
But if Mr Cameron pushes ahead with a marriage reform
bill to allow fully-fledged gay weddings, then equality laws will apply to
churches, the document warned.
‘If Parliament were in due course to legislate for same-sex
marriage, as recently suggested by the Prime Minister, we would of course be in
new territory,’ it said.
No
exemption: Churches will have to allow gay marriages under the new scheme
Mr Cameron indicated his support for gay marriage in
October, saying: ‘Conservatives believe in the ties that bind
us; that society is stronger when we make vows to each other and support each
other. So I don’t support gay marriage despite being a Conservative. I support
gay marriage because I’m a Conservative.’
Liberal Democrat Equalities Minister Lynne Featherstone has
indicated that nothing would force churches that disapprove of gay
relationships to host same-sex ceremonies – but the CofE’s analysis suggests
any attempt to bar legalised gay marriage from churches would fall at the first
court challenge.
Civil partnerships, introduced in 2004, give couples the
same legal and financial rights as married couples.
New rules will allow couples to register
them in approved religious buildings for the first time.
However, CofE churches may not apply to hold the ceremonies
without the permission of the General Synod, the Church’s parliament.