Same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland
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Same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland has been legal since 13 January 2020, following the enactment of the ''
Northern Ireland (Executive Formation etc) Act 2019 The Northern Ireland (Executive Formation etc) Act 2019 (c. 22), colloquially known as the 2019 Northern Ireland Act, is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that provided for the extension of the period for forming a Northern Ireland ...
''. The first marriage ceremony took place on 11 February 2020.
Civil partnerships A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, created primarily as a means to provide recognition in law for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage ...
have also been available for same-sex couples in
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
since their introduction by the
Government of the United Kingdom ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal coat of arms of t ...
in 2005. Between 2012 and 2015, the Northern Ireland Assembly voted five times on
same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same Legal sex and gender, sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being ...
, and although it was passed by a slim majority on the fifth attempt, it was vetoed by the Democratic Unionist Party using the
petition of concern A cross-community vote or cross-community support is a form of voting used in the Northern Ireland Assembly according to the provisions of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement. It requires the support of both main communities in Northern Ireland, in o ...
. Following the inconclusive 2017 Assembly election and failure to form a
Northern Ireland Executive The Northern Ireland Executive is the devolved government of Northern Ireland, an administrative branch of the legislature – the Northern Ireland Assembly. It is answerable to the assembly and was initially established according to the ...
by the deadline of 21 October 2019, provisions in the ''Northern Ireland (Executive Formation etc) Act 2019'' mandating same-sex marriage by 13 January 2020 took effect. Regulations implementing same-sex marriage were signed by Julian Smith, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, on 19 December 2019. The politician who introduced the 13 January 2020 deadline into the legislation, Baron Hayward, did so in order to allow enough time to update all legislation impacted by the change, such as pension rights and parental responsibilities. Marriages of same-sex couples became legally recognised on 13 January 2020, with couples free to register their intent to marry and couples who had previously married elsewhere having their unions recognised from that date.


Civil partnerships

Civil partnership A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, created primarily as a means to provide recognition in law for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage ...
s ( ga, páirtnéireacht shibhialta; Ulster Scots: ) have been available to same-sex couples in Northern Ireland since 2005, following the passage of the ''
Civil Partnership Act 2004 The Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c 33) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, introduced by the Labour government, which grants civil partnerships in the United Kingdom the rights and responsibilities very similar to those in civil ...
'' in the
UK Parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative supremac ...
. The Act gives same-sex couples most, but not all, of the same rights and responsibilities as
civil marriage A civil marriage is a marriage performed, recorded, and recognized by a government official. Such a marriage may be performed by a religious body and recognized by the state, or it may be entirely secular. History Every country maintaining a pop ...
. Civil partners are entitled to the same
property rights The right to property, or the right to own property (cf. ownership) is often classified as a human right for natural persons regarding their possessions. A general recognition of a right to private property is found more rarely and is typically ...
as married opposite-sex couples, the same exemption as married couples on inheritance tax,
social security Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specificall ...
and
pension A pension (, from Latin ''pensiō'', "payment") is a fund into which a sum of money is added during an employee's employment years and from which payments are drawn to support the person's retirement from work in the form of periodic payments ...
benefits, and also the ability to get parental responsibility for a partner's children, as well as responsibility for reasonable
maintenance Maintenance may refer to: Biological science * Maintenance of an organism * Maintenance respiration Non-technical maintenance * Alimony, also called ''maintenance'' in British English * Champerty and maintenance, two related legal doct ...
of one's partner and their children,
tenancy A leasehold estate is an ownership of a temporary right to hold land or property in which a lessee or a tenant holds rights of real property by some form of title from a lessor or landlord. Although a tenant does hold rights to real property, a l ...
rights, full life insurance recognition, next of kin rights in hospitals, and others. There is a formal process for dissolving partnerships akin to
divorce Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...
. Civil partnerships can be conducted by religious organisations in England, Wales and Scotland but not in Northern Ireland. Civil partnerships were opened to different-sex couples following the passage of the ''Marriage (Same-sex Couples) and Civil Partnership (Opposite-sex Couples) (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2019''.


Same-sex marriage

Marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...
in Northern Ireland is subject to laws in force at the time. There is no obligation for either of those being married to belong to a
religious denomination A religious denomination is a subgroup within a religion that operates under a common name and tradition among other activities. The term refers to the various Christian denominations (for example, Eastern Orthodox, Catholic, and the many varie ...
, or for the marriage to be carried out by a religious institution, but marriages carried out in the prescribed form by a religious denomination and registered by an authorised celebrant are recognised by the state.


Northern Ireland Assembly proposals

Legislation to allow for the recognition of
same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same Legal sex and gender, sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being ...
s in Northern Ireland was debated five times in the Northern Ireland Assembly between 2012 and 2015. On the first four of those occasions, only a minority of Assembly members voted in favour of same-sex marriage, though the last vote on the issue in November 2015 saw a majority of
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vote in favour of same-sex marriage. On 1 October 2012, the first Northern Ireland Assembly motion regarding same-sex marriage was introduced by
Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur G ...
and the Greens. The motion was defeated 50–45. On 29 April 2013, a second attempt to introduce same-sex marriage was defeated by the Assembly 53–42, with the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) and the
Ulster Unionist Party The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) is a unionist political party in Northern Ireland. The party was founded in 1905, emerging from the Irish Unionist Alliance in Ulster. Under Edward Carson, it led unionist opposition to the Irish Home Rule m ...
(UUP) voting against and Sinn Féin, the
Social Democratic and Labour Party The Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) ( ga, Páirtí Sóisialta Daonlathach an Lucht Oibre) is a social-democratic and Irish nationalist political party in Northern Ireland. The SDLP currently has eight members in the Northern Ireland ...
(SDLP), the Alliance Party, and the Green Party voting in favour. A third attempt on 29 April 2014 was defeated 51–43, with all
nationalist Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Th ...
MLAs (Sinn Féin and SDLP), most Alliance MPs and four unionists (two from
NI21 NI21 was a short-lived political party in Northern Ireland. It was founded in 2013 by ex-Ulster Unionist Party MLAs Basil McCrea and John McCallister. Although it explicitly supported Northern Ireland staying part of the United Kingdom (i.e. un ...
and two from the UUP) voting in favour. The remaining unionists (DUP, UUP,
UKIP The UK Independence Party (UKIP; ) is a Eurosceptic, right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. The party reached its greatest level of success in the mid-2010s, when it gained two members of Parliament and was the largest p ...
and
Traditional Unionist Voice The Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) is a unionist political party in Northern Ireland. In common with all other Northern Irish unionist parties, the TUV's political programme has as its sine qua non the preservation of Northern Ireland's place ...
) and two Alliance MLAs voted against. A fourth attempt on 27 April 2015 also failed, 49–47. Again, Sinn Féin, SDLP and five Alliance members voted in favour, while the DUP and all but four of the UUP members (who were granted a
conscience vote A conscience vote or free vote is a type of vote in a legislative body where legislators are allowed to vote according to their own personal conscience rather than according to an official line set down by their political party. In a parliamentary ...
) voted against. On 2 November 2015, the Northern Ireland Assembly voted for a fifth time on the question of legalising same-sex marriage. Of the 105 legislators who voted, 53 were in favour and 52 against, the first time a majority of the Assembly had ever voted in favour of same-sex marriage. However, the DUP again tabled a
petition of concern A cross-community vote or cross-community support is a form of voting used in the Northern Ireland Assembly according to the provisions of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement. It requires the support of both main communities in Northern Ireland, in o ...
signed by 32 members, preventing the motion from having any legal effect. Sinn Féin said that legislation regarding same-sex marriage would be a priority for the party in the Assembly elected in May 2016. On 23 June 2016, Finance Minister
Máirtín Ó Muilleoir Máirtín Ó Muilleoir ( Martin Millar; born 1959) is an Irish Sinn Féin politician, author, publisher and businessman, who served as the 58th Lord Mayor of Belfast (2013–14). Ó Muilleoir's siblings include writer, blogger and '' Huffington ...
announced he had requested that officials in the Executive begin drafting legislation to allow same-sex marriage, stating that MLAs would much rather vote on the issue than "be forced to legislate ollowingan adverse judgment" in the courts. In October 2016, First Minister Arlene Foster reaffirmed the DUP's opposition to same-sex marriage, saying the party would continue to issue a petition of concern blocking same-sex marriage in the Assembly over the next five years. The DUP won fewer than 30 seats at the March 2017 elections, losing the ability to singlehandedly block a bill using a petition of concern. The Assembly failed to reconvene for nearly three years following the election, with same-sex marriage and other issues being sources of disagreement between the major parties.


United Kingdom Parliament


2018 proposals

Karen Bradley Karen Anne Bradley (''née'' Howarth, born 12 March 1970) is a British Conservative Party politician who served as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland from 2018 to 2019, and has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Staffordshire Moorland ...
, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, said in February 2018 that same-sex marriage could be legislated for in Northern Ireland by the
Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprema ...
, and that the
government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
would likely allow a conscience vote for its MPs if such legislation was introduced.
Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...
MP
Conor McGinn Conor Patrick McGinn (born 31 July 1984) is a British politician serving as Member of Parliament (MP) for St Helens North since 2015. He was the Labour Party Deputy National Campaign Coordinator from June 2021 and Shadow Minister without Port ...
said he would introduce a
private member's bill A private member's bill is a bill (proposed law) introduced into a legislature by a legislator who is not acting on behalf of the executive branch. The designation "private member's bill" is used in most Westminster system jurisdictions, in whi ...
extending same-sex marriage to Northern Ireland by the end of March 2018. Legislation to legalise same-sex marriage was introduced to the
House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...
on 28 March 2018, and passed its
first reading A reading of a bill is a stage of debate on the bill held by a general body of a legislature. In the Westminster system, developed in the United Kingdom, there are generally three readings of a bill as it passes through the stages of becoming, ...
. The bill's second reading in the Commons was blocked by
Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
MP
Christopher Chope Sir Christopher Robert Chope (born 19 May 1947) is a British barrister and politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Christchurch in Dorset since 1997. A member of the Conservative Party, he was first elected in 1983 fo ...
on 11 May 2018, and again on 26 October, and was rescheduled for debate on 23 November 2018, before being again rescheduled to 25 January 2019. An identical bill was introduced to the
House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...
on 27 March 2018 by Baron Hayward, and passed its first reading that day, though without government support. On 1 November 2018,
royal assent Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in other ...
was granted to the ''Northern Ireland (Executive Formation and Exercise of Functions) Act 2018'', which contained sections describing Northern Ireland's same-sex marriage and abortion bans as human rights violations. The law did not legalise same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland, but directed the British Government to "issue guidance" to civil servants in Northern Ireland "in relation to the incompatibility of human rights with
he region's laws on the two issues He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...
. The law passed 207–117 in the House of Commons.


Legalisation by Westminster (2019)

In March 2019, Baron Hayward introduced an amendment to an unrelated government bill, which if accepted would have extended same-sex marriage to Northern Ireland.
Baroness Williams of Trafford Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knigh ...
opposed the amendment and said the
UK Government ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal Arms , date_es ...
wanted the Northern Ireland Assembly to legalise same-sex marriage. Hayward withdrew it, stating that he and other Lords "made a tactical withdrawal today, but we will be back, this time to win". In July 2019, McGinn announced his intention to attach an amendment to an upcoming Northern Ireland administrative bill, which would legalise same-sex marriage three months after passage of the bill if the Northern Ireland Assembly remained suspended. Under the terms of the originally-drafted amendment, the region's executive could approve or repeal the measure upon resumption. The amendment passed on 9 July in the House of Commons with 383 votes in favour and 73 votes against. McGinn's amendment, which was further amended by Lord Hayward during passage in the House of Lords on 17 July, was approved without a formal vote. It required the Secretary of State to issue regulations extending same-sex marriage to Northern Ireland if the
Executive Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to: Role or title * Executive, a senior management role in an organization ** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators ** Executive dir ...
had not reconvened by 21 October 2019. If this occurred, then the regulations would come into effect on 13 January 2020. Lord Hayward's amendment was approved in the House of Commons with 328 votes in favour and 65 votes against on 18 July. The bill passed its final stages in the Parliament and received royal assent by Queen
Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...
on 24 July 2019, becoming the ''
Northern Ireland (Executive Formation etc) Act 2019 The Northern Ireland (Executive Formation etc) Act 2019 (c. 22), colloquially known as the 2019 Northern Ireland Act, is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that provided for the extension of the period for forming a Northern Ireland ...
''.


Attempted recall of Northern Ireland Assembly (2019)

On 21 October 2019, the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) and the
Traditional Unionist Voice The Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) is a unionist political party in Northern Ireland. In common with all other Northern Irish unionist parties, the TUV's political programme has as its sine qua non the preservation of Northern Ireland's place ...
petitioned to call the Assembly back into session for the first time in nearly three years. However,
Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur G ...
, the Alliance Party, the Greens and
People Before Profit People Before Profit ( ga, Pobal Roimh Bhrabús, PBP) is a left-wing to far-left Trotskyist political party formed in October 2005. It is active in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. History PBP was established in 2005 as t ...
announced their abstention from the Assembly, and the
Social Democratic and Labour Party The Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) ( ga, Páirtí Sóisialta Daonlathach an Lucht Oibre) is a social-democratic and Irish nationalist political party in Northern Ireland. The SDLP currently has eight members in the Northern Ireland ...
walked out of the Assembly session, leading to the absence of all nationalist MLAs and the lack of a cross-community quorum for electing a new
speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** I ...
. Incumbent Speaker
Robin Newton Robin Gray Newton (born 21 December 1945) is a Unionist politician from Northern Ireland representing the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP). He was a Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly (MLA) for East Belfast from 2003 to 2022, and was a j ...
refused to suspend the rules to allow an anti-abortion bill and a potential anti-same-sex marriage bill to be brought to a floor vote, leading the DUP to walk out of the Assembly and end the session.Abortion: NI politicians' bid to halt law changes fails
BBC News, 21 October 2019
As a result, the Westminster deadline for overturning the introduction of same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland under the ''Northern Ireland (Executive Formation etc) Act 2019'' passed at midnight on 21 October 2019, with
abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregn ...
becoming legal and the Secretary of State required to issue regulations extending same-sex marriage to Northern Ireland. The ''Marriage (Same-sex Couples) and Civil Partnership (Opposite-sex Couples) (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2019'' were signed by Secretary of State Julian Smith on 19 December 2019 and came into effect on 13 January 2020.


Commencement of marriages

The first same-sex couple in Northern Ireland to legally marry under the new law were Robyn Peoples and Sharni Edwards-Peoples on 11 February 2020 in
Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...
. Connor Phillips and Shane Robinson were the first male couple to marry in Northern Ireland on 12 February in
Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...
,
County Down County Down () is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It covers an area of and has a population of 531,665. It borders County Antrim to the ...
. Marriage ceremonies of same-sex couples in religious facilities became permitted in early September 2020, after subsidiary legislation was passed by the
Northern Ireland Office The Northern Ireland Office (NIO; ga, Oifig Thuaisceart Éireann, Ulster-Scots: ''Norlin Airlann Oaffis'') is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for Northern Ireland affairs. The NIO is led by the Secretary of State for N ...
. The legislation contains exemptions and protections for religious bodies and officiants that do not wish to conduct same-sex marriages. The first religious same-sex marriage ceremony was performed on 12 December 2020 in
Carrickfergus Carrickfergus ( , meaning " Fergus' rock") is a large town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It sits on the north shore of Belfast Lough, from Belfast. The town had a population of 27,998 at the 2011 Census. It is County Antrim's oldest t ...
. The officiant was Pastor Steve Ames of the Harbour Faith Community. Regulations to enable those in civil partnerships to convert their relationship status to marriage were laid in Parliament on 22 October 2020, with the first conversions taking place from 7 December 2020.


Court challenges


Before 2019 Westminster legalisation

Two legal challenges to Northern Ireland's same-sex marriage ban were heard in the High Court in November and December 2015. Two couples, Grainne Close and Shannon Sickles and Chris and Henry Flanagan-Kanem, brought the case claiming that Northern Ireland's prohibition on same-sex marriage breached their
human rights Human rights are Morality, moral principles or Social norm, normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for ce ...
. The case was heard simultaneously with a case brought in January 2015 in which two men who wed in
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
sought to have their marriage recognised in Northern Ireland. A ruling was handed down in August 2017; Judge John Ailbe O'Hara of the High Court found against the couples and determined that there were no grounds under case law from the
European Court of Human Rights The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR or ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that a ...
that the couples' rights were violated by Northern Ireland's refusal to recognise their union as a marriage and that same-sex marriage was a matter of social policy for the Parliament to decide rather than the judiciary. One of the couples involved in the litigation (who were granted
anonymity Anonymity describes situations where the acting person's identity is unknown. Some writers have argued that namelessness, though technically correct, does not capture what is more centrally at stake in contexts of anonymity. The important idea he ...
) said they would appeal the ruling. The
appeal In law, an appeal is the process in which cases are reviewed by a higher authority, where parties request a formal change to an official decision. Appeals function both as a process for error correction as well as a process of clarifying and ...
was heard by a three-judge panel of the
Court of Appeal A court of appeals, also called a court of appeal, appellate court, appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal. In much of t ...
on 16 March 2018; a ruling had been expected some time in 2019. On 7 April 2020, the Court of Appeal in Belfast ruled that same-sex couples faced unjustified
discrimination Discrimination is the act of making unjustified distinctions between people based on the groups, classes, or other categories to which they belong or are perceived to belong. People may be discriminated on the basis of race, gender, age, relig ...
while denied the opportunity to marry in Northern Ireland. But with changes to the law meaning same-sex weddings can take place in Northern Ireland since 11 February 2020, senior judges decided not to make a formal declaration on any human rights breach.


After 2019 Westminster legalisation

In 2019, two same-sex couples indicated they would sue the UK Government over bureaucratic obstacles that may have forced them to wait two years before being capable of converting their civil partnerships into marriages. The issue was rectified by further regulations which came into effect in December 2020.


Statistics


Civil partnerships

According to the
Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency The Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA, ga, Gníomhaireacht Thuaisceart Éireann um Staitisticí agus Taighde, links=no) is an executive agency within the Department of Finance (Northern Ireland), Department of Finance in No ...
(NISRA), 1,436 same-sex civil partnerships were registered between 2005 and 2021. The data is shown in the table below. Most civil partnerships were conducted in
Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...
, the city accounting for about half of all Northern Irish partnerships, followed by
Derry City and Strabane Ulster Scots: ''Derrie an Stràbane'' , settlement_type = District , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_type1 = Constituent country , subdivision_type2 = , subdivision_type3 = , subdivision ...
, and
Newry, Mourne and Down Ulster Scots: ''Newrie, Morne an Doon'' , settlement_type = District , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_type1 = Constituent country , subdivision_type2 = , subdivision_type3 = , subdivisi ...
. Mid Ulster and Antrim and Newtownabbey registered the fewest partnerships. In 2015, the average age for men entering civil partnerships was 33.8, whereas for women it was 36.8 (34.3 and 32.2 respectively for married opposite-sex partners). There were seven partnership dissolutions in 2015 (five to male couples and two to lesbian couples), compared to 2,360 divorces.


Marriage

158 same-sex marriages were performed in Northern Ireland in 2020. This constituted 4.2 percent of the total number of marriages performed in Northern Ireland during that period. This increased to 398 same-sex marriages in 2021.


Public opinion

A September 2014 LucidTalk poll for the ''
Belfast Telegraph The ''Belfast Telegraph'' is a daily newspaper published in Belfast, Northern Ireland, by Independent News & Media. Its editor is Eoin Brannigan. Reflecting its unionist tradition, the paper has historically been "favoured by the Protestant po ...
'' showed that 40.1% of the population supported same-sex marriage, while 39.4% opposed and 20.5% either had or stated no opinion. Of those that gave an opinion, 50.5% supported and 49.5% opposed same-sex marriage. A poll in May 2015 found that 68% of the population supported same-sex marriage, with support rising to 75% in
Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...
. A "mass rally", organised by the
Irish Congress of Trade Unions The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (often abbreviated to just Congress or ICTU), formed in 1959 by the merger of the Irish Trades Union Congress (founded in 1894) and the Congress of Irish Unions (founded in 1945), is a national trade union centr ...
,
Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...
, and the
Rainbow Project The Rainbow Project is a non-profit organization based in Northern Ireland that promotes the health and wellbeing of the LGBT people and their families in Northern Ireland. The Rainbow Project is the largest LGBT organisation (by number of sta ...
took place in Belfast on 13 June 2015, with a 20,000 person turnout. A June 2016 poll placed support for same-sex marriage at 70%, while those opposing it at 22%. A December 2016 LucidTalk poll found that 65.22% of people surveyed supported the legalisation of same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland. However, a majority of unionist respondents was opposed to same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland, with only 37.04% in favour (with support rising to 71% for unionists aged between 18 and 24 years of age). By contrast, 92.92% of
nationalist Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Th ...
respondents and 95.75% of
Alliance An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
/
Green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 Nanometre, nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by ...
/ PBP voters were in favour. An April 2018 Sky Data poll placed support for same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland at 76%, with 18% opposed. A 2019 poll conducted by
YouGov YouGov is a British international Internet-based market research and data analytics firm, headquartered in the UK, with operations in Europe, North America, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific. In 2007, it acquired US company Polimetrix, and sinc ...
revealed that 70% of British people agreed that same-sex marriage should be legalised in Northern Ireland (up from 65% in 2018), including 55% of those living in Northern Ireland. Among
Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
voters, 62% (up from 54% in 2018) expressed support for the introduction of same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland. 81% of " Remain" voters said they supported same-sex marriage, compared to 60% of "Leave" voters (this was at a time when in the aftermath of the
2016 EU referendum The United Kingdom European Union membership referendum, commonly referred to as the EU referendum or the Brexit referendum, took place on 23 June 2016 in the United Kingdom (UK) and Gibraltar to ask the electorate whether the country shoul ...
the issue of
Brexit Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 CET).The UK also left the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or ...
dominated British politics). In Northern Ireland itself, 72% of women supported same-sex marriage, compared to 40% of men.


Position of Christian and secular groups

The main churches in Northern Ireland define marriage as between one man and one woman, and do not support same-sex marriage. The majority of marriages in Northern Ireland are also conducted by religious denominations, e.g. 4,407 out of 7,255 marriage ceremonies in 2019 (61%). By contrast,
secular humanists Secular humanism is a philosophy, belief system or life stance that embraces human reason, secular ethics, and philosophical naturalism while specifically rejecting religious dogma, supernaturalism, and superstition as the basis of morality an ...
in Northern Ireland have been conducting partnership ceremonies for same-sex couples in Northern Ireland for many years. Northern Ireland Humanists, the Northern Irish section of
Humanists UK Humanists UK, known from 1967 until May 2017 as the British Humanist Association (BHA), is a charitable organisation which promotes secular humanism and aims to represent "people who seek to live good lives without religious or superstitious be ...
, welcomed the introduction of same-sex marriage and said it was looking forward to conducting official ceremonies. Religious same-sex marriage ceremonies have been possible since 1 September 2020. Regulations to permit religious institutions to perform legally recognised same-sex marriages and to provide exemptions and protections for religious bodies that do not wish to conduct such marriages were enacted in July 2020 and took effect two months later. Under the ''Marriage (Northern Ireland) Order 2003'', an officiant shall not solemnise a religious marriage "except in accordance with a form of ceremony which is recognised by the religious body of which he is a member" and which "includes and is in no way inconsistent with" an appropriate declaration i.e. that they accept each other as spouses in the presence of each other, the officiant, and two witnesses. A religious body is defined in legislation as "an organised group of people meeting regularly for common religious worship". * Within the
Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
, the
Catechism of the Catholic Church The ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'' ( la, Catechismus Catholicae Ecclesiae; commonly called the ''Catechism'' or the ''CCC'') is a catechism promulgated for the Catholic Church by Pope John Paul II in 1992. It aims to summarize, in book for ...
states: "The matrimonial covenant, by which a man and a woman establish between themselves a partnership of the whole of life, is by its nature ordered toward the good of the spouses and the procreation and education of offspring." * The
Presbyterian Church in Ireland The Presbyterian Church in Ireland (PCI; ga, Eaglais Phreispitéireach in Éirinn; Ulster-Scots: ''Prisbytairin Kirk in Airlann'') is the largest Presbyterian denomination in the Republic of Ireland, and the largest Protestant denomination in ...
subscribes to the
Westminster Confession of Faith The Westminster Confession of Faith is a Reformed confession of faith. Drawn up by the 1646 Westminster Assembly as part of the Westminster Standards to be a confession of the Church of England, it became and remains the " subordinate standard" ...
which affirms that marriage "is to be between one man and one woman: neither is it lawful for any man to have more than one wife, nor for any woman to have more than one husband, at the same time". * The
Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland ( ga, Eaglais na hÉireann, ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Kirk o Airlann, ) is a Christian church in Ireland and an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the second ...
affirms in its canon law that "according to our Lord's teaching that marriage is in its purpose a union permanent and life-long, for better or worse, till death do them part, of one man with one woman, to the exclusion of all others on either side". In 2012, the General Synod of the Church of Ireland reaffirmed this teaching in a motion on "Human Sexuality in the Context of Christian Belief". The motion added that the church "recognises for itself and of itself, no other understanding of marriage" and acknowledged that members of the church "have at times hurt and wounded people by words and actions, in relation to human sexuality". The church affirmed a "continuing commitment to love our neighbour, and opposition to all unbiblical and uncharitable actions and attitudes in respect of human sexuality from whatever perspective, including bigotry, hurtful words or actions, and demeaning or damaging language". * The
Methodist Church in Ireland The Methodist Church in Ireland ( Ulster-Scots: ''Methody Kirk in Airlann'', ) is a Wesleyan Methodist church that operates across both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland on an all-Ireland basis. It is the fourth-largest Christian denom ...
states that marriage is "a relationship, intended as permanent, between one man and one woman" in its "Practical Expressions of Methodist Belief" document. The church opposes "all debased forms of sexuality and sexual practice, whether heterosexual or homosexual" but asks for "understanding and tolerance for those whose sexual orientation is towards those of their own gender" and encourages the wider church "to give a greater lead in the education of society, including Christians, regarding this issue, so that ignorance, prejudice and fear may disappear". * The
Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland The Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland (ABC, ABCi and ABCI) is a Baptist Christian denomination based in Ireland. It is a group of 117 autonomous Baptist churches working together in fellowship and evangelism, training and caring minis ...
affirms "the creation ordinance of marriage as the lifelong union of one man and one woman" in its Doctrinal Statement. * The
Congregational Union of Ireland The Congregational Union of Ireland is strongly associated with the Puritans and Oliver Cromwell. The Irish Congregational Church was formed in 1829. In 1899 it absorbed the Irish Evangelical Society. By 1927 there were about 10,000 members in Irel ...
affirms the
Savoy Declaration The Savoy Declaration is a Congregationalist confession of Faith. Its full title is ''A Declaration of the Faith and Order owned and practised in the Congregational Churches in England.'' It was drawn up in October 1658 by English Independents a ...
, which is similar to the Westminster Confession of Faith in stating that "marriage is to be between one man and one woman: neither is it lawful for any man to have more than one wife, nor for any woman to have more than one husband at the same time". * The
Salvation Army Salvation (from Latin: ''salvatio'', from ''salva'', 'safe, saved') is the state of being saved or protected from harm or a dire situation. In religion and theology, ''salvation'' generally refers to the deliverance of the soul from sin and its c ...
– as stated in its "Marriage Positional Statement" – believes that marriage is "an exclusive and lifelong relationship between one man and one woman which is characterised by mutual submission, respect, self-giving love, faithfulness and openness to each other". It adds that human imperfection and sinfulness "may make it difficult to reach the goal of lifelong faithfulness" and that the Christian ideal of marriage is compromised by breakdown, separation and divorce, cohabitation, forced marriage, same-sex partnerships and polygamy. However, the Salvation Army "does not condemn or abandon people who fall short of the ideal" but rather, in God's name, it seeks to offer support, reconciliation, counsel, grace and forgiveness. * The
Reformed Presbyterian Church of Ireland The Reformed Presbyterian Church of Ireland is a Presbyterian church in Ireland. The church currently has forty-three congregations, of which thirty-five are located in Northern Ireland; the remaining eight are located in the Republic of Ireland. A ...
, the Evangelical Presbyterian Church and the
Free Presbyterian Church of Ulster :''Distinct from Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland and Free Church of Scotland (post 1900)'' The Free Presbyterian Church of Ulster ( ga, Eaglais Phreispitéireach Saor Uladh) is a Calvinist denomination founded by Ian Paisley in 1951. Doctr ...
subscribe to the Westminster Confession of Faith and its definition of marriage. * The Quakers in Northern Ireland perform same-sex marriages. In 2018, a motion supporting and allowing such marriages in their
meeting house A meeting house (meetinghouse, meeting-house) is a building where religious and sometimes public meetings take place. Terminology Nonconformist Protestant denominations distinguish between a * church, which is a body of people who believe in Chr ...
s was passed at an annual yearly meeting held in
Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...
. The
Quakers Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abil ...
are the only mainstream church in Northern Ireland that allows same-sex marriages.


See also

*
LGBT rights in Northern Ireland Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) rights in Northern Ireland have traditionally been slower to advance than the rest of the United Kingdom, with the region having lagged behind England, Scotland, and Wales. Northern Ireland was the las ...
*
Same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom Same-sex marriage is legal in all parts of the United Kingdom. As marriage is a devolved legislative matter, different parts of the UK legalised at different times; it has been recognised and performed in England and Wales since March 2014, in ...
*
Same-sex marriage in the Republic of Ireland Same-sex marriage in Ireland has been legal since 16 November 2015. A referendum on 22 May 2015 amended the Constitution of Ireland to provide that marriage is recognised irrespective of the sex of the partners. The measure was signed into la ...
*
Recognition of same-sex unions in Europe Recognition may refer to: *Award, something given in recognition of an achievement Machine learning *Pattern recognition, a branch of machine learning which encompasses the meanings below Biometric * Recognition of human individuals, or biomet ...
*
Recognition of same-sex unions in the British Overseas Territories Among the fourteen British Overseas Territories, eight – Akrotiri and Dhekelia, the British Antarctic Territory, the British Indian Ocean Territory, the Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, the Pitcairn Islands, Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da ...
* Same-sex union court cases


References

{{Status of same-sex unions
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
LGBT rights in Northern Ireland 2020 in LGBT history