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Meeting of the Parliament 04 February 2014

04 Feb 2014 · S4 · Meeting of the Parliament

Item of business

Marriage and Civil Partnership (Scotland) Bill

Fabiani, Linda SNP East Kilbride Watch on SPTV

It is an absolute delight to be in the chamber today and to pass the bill very soon, I hope.

I thank not only all those who have worked hard to bring to fruition the principles that many people have worked for for years but those who have worked hard on the technicalities and have tried to ensure that, as far as possible, as the convener of the Equal Opportunities Committee, Margaret McCulloch, said, everyone was heard with dignity and respect on a subject that evokes strong emotions on all sides.

I am glad that we are here but, for me, it is not really the detail that matters; it is the principle and the ethic that says to me, “This is absolutely the right thing to do.” Everybody can think of people, whether from their childhood or family members, who have been badly affected by the discrimination that has happened. Let us not forget that it was only in 1980, I think, that we decriminalised homosexuality in this country. That is not that long ago.

I want to see the kind of society that has said at a top level, “We’re creating equality by allowing same-sex marriage,” and in which people such as my great-uncle do not have to run down to London and live apart from their family, as my great-uncle had to do so that he could live with someone he loved. There was also my uncle, who had an absolutely rotten childhood, adolescence and adulthood, very much based on his psyche and his having to live a life that was a pretence. Members will notice that I am not saying their names. That is because there are still people out there to whom that would be a bit of a revelation. I respect the memory of both men; they hid what they were for very valid reasons.

I also want to live in a society in which actors do not have to portray in real life the characters that they portray on screen. Yes, we have come a long way on that but there is still a bit of discrimination going on in that area.

I want to live—and represent the constituency of East Kilbride—in a country in which I do not have the occasional young person coming to me and saying, “I have to admit to everyone that I am gay,” or “I have to admit to everyone that I am bisexual,” and asking, “Do you know anyone who will support me or help me?” I do not want people to have to admit to anything. I want people to just be people and to be the way that they are, and I want everyone to be treated equally in the eyes of the law.

To go back to the earlier discussion about civil marriage, religious marriage and civil partnerships, everyone should be equal and have equal chances and equal opportunities. My colleague Stewart Maxwell was quite right about that. The reality is that we have civil partnerships now—they are there. There should be equality for anyone who wants to take part in any of those options.

I am not married—I have chosen not to be married. Duncan may have something to do with that as well, right enough, so we have chosen not to be married. If we choose to have a civil partnership—if that comes in—it does not matter what the differences are between civil marriage and civil partnership. It will be my choice and absolutely no business of anyone in the chamber or anyone else what we choose to do if the law says that we have that opportunity—that everyone has that opportunity.

I loved Stewart Maxwell’s comment that sometimes people are forced to choose between different kinds of apples; it is not always about choosing between apples and pears. I will leave my colleagues to decide whether I am a soor old Granny Smith or a sweet Pink Lady. [Laughter.] Maybe I do not want to hear the answer to that.

Yes, we have done something pretty wonderful today and I am really pleased about that, but let us not kid ourselves that everything is solved just because we put this into legislation. There is still a long way to go. There is still discrimination out there and there are still a lot of people who need support before we get to the point at which, in reality, it just does not matter a toss what someone’s sexuality is.

I cannot mention everyone who has been involved in the bill but I will mention the Equality Network—

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Meeting of the Parliament 04 February 2014

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