Marriage and state-recognised social partnerships best defined separately

DEFINING a legal framework for civil partnerships outside of conventional marriage is appropriate in the current Irish cultural climate. This should include heterosexual and homosexual social partnerships.

There is no need to distort the conventional understanding of the definition of marriage to placate those campaigning for the legal right of state recognition of their social arrangements.

The concept of a civil right varies between cultures and, over time, within cultures. Marriage is an evolved social arrangement to facilitate pair bonding and the upbringing of children. The equivalent can be seen in the animal kingdom.