Meeting of the Parliament (Hybrid) 19 May 2020
I thank the clerks and witnesses who have made the collection of evidence at stage 1 enjoyable and seamless in adding to the committee’s knowledge. In particular, I thank the Equalities Network, which provides evidence of such depth and quality. I also thank the campaigning groups who have seen the change that we are driving forward today already enacted in England, which has brought equality to mixed-sex couples who want to enjoy the same protections that civil partnership offers. Put simply, if the bill is passed by the Scottish Parliament, it will be another step towards equality.
The bill offers legal and financial protection for both parties in the event of a relationship ending. However, it does so much more, in freeing those couples of the baggage of religious connotations that many attach to marriage. That is an important choice and one that we should extend to Scottish citizens.
I know how long some opposite-sex couples have waited for the opportunity to formalise their relationships and to enjoy the stability, rights and entitlements that other couples enjoy. There are 3 million opposite-sex couples who cohabit but choose not to marry and those couples support 1 million children. However, as it stands, they do not have the security or legal protection that married couples or those in civil partnerships enjoy. That needs to change. The bill will allow more people to formalise their relationship in the way that they choose.