FG keeps quiet on same-sex laws as gay councillor marries

FINE GAEL would not say yesterday if they supported legalising gay marriages following the confirmation that one of their councillors had married his gay partner in Canada.

The party congratulated Cllr Peter Kelly on his marriage to long-term boyfriend Nick Dunphy and said he was an excellent representative. "As a party of tolerance and diversity we are proud to have him as a member," Fine Gael's equality spokesperson Senator Sheila Terry said.

But when asked if they supported the legalisation of gay marriages here, a Fine Gael spokesman said: "We proposed the extension of tax and inheritance rights to same-sex couples in our election manifesto and are currently devising a policy document on same-sex unions."