Partnership bill should be amended to safeguard freedom of conscience

IN his column (August 28), Matt Cooper takes issue with claims that the Civil Partnership Bill will undermine the right to freedom of conscience.

He describes such claims as a “scare”. Unfortunately, for those who believe in the traditional understanding of marriage as between a man and a woman, these claims are far more substantial than a mere scare.

The Civil Partnership Bill, by amending various equality laws, will make it a crime to refuse on conscientious grounds to facilitate or participate in a same-sex civil partnership ceremony. Similar legislation abroad has already led to photographers, parish committees (in relation to the use of their church halls) and printers being prosecuted. Hence there is an urgent need to amend the proposed bill in order to safeguard the human right to freedom of conscience. It is totally unfair to prosecute people because they actively consider such legislation to undermine the privileged status of marriage, a status granted on the basis that it is the best environment within which to raise children.