Monday was the first day for couples to post notice of a civil partnership in the UK. These go up at local “Register Offices” two weeks before the ceremony, in the same procedure as marriages. The ceremony involves making a formal declaration and signing documents confirming the Registration. The only difference between this and conventional marriages is that they need not be held in public and cannot take place in a church. One of the first couples will be Elton John and David Furnish who will marry in the same place as Prince Charles and Camilla.
While some local councils, who run the Register Offices, are ambivalent about the new role, others are atively promoting their facilities. A new industry of gay wedding planners, wedding cake accessories etc is taking off. The Times published its first three Announcements in the “births Deaths and Marriages” section of its classified advertisements.
Retailers, including chain stores are getting in on the act as the BBC report
A range of “Mr and Mr” and “Mrs and Mrs” cards will hit Asda supermarkets this week.
And sets of “Darling, Dearest, Queerest” embroidered towel and soaps went on sale at Superdrug stores on Friday
Asda (the name is a contraction of “Associated Dairies”) is the third or fourth largest supermarket chain. It was brought by Wal-Mart in 1999 and its large “superstores” are run under the Wal*Mart name.
Update [2005-12-6 21:49:30 by Londonbear]: The first ceremony took place on Monday in Worthing on the south coast of England. The standard 15 day waiting period was waived because one of the parteners was terminally ill. This is at the discretion of the Registrar and is often granted in such cases when heterosexual marriage is licenced.
Sadly one of the partners died on Tuesday so we now have the first “groom-groom” and the first widower under the new legislation. The ceremony means that he will be able to arrange the funeral as next-of-kin and will not have to pay inheritance tax on their joint home.
The only difference between this and conventional marriages is that they need not be held in public and cannot take place in a church.
The government passed a law saying these cannot take place in church? Please don’t tell me that was done in the name of religious freedom.
I confess I haven’t followed the British debate on this issue, so I don’t know how widespread a view it is there. But there are plenty of folks in the States who think that not allowing churches to perform same-sex marriages is somehow in the interests of religious freedom. It still boggles my mind.
The idea was to not impose requirement to hold ceremonies contrary to their teachings. In fact Elton John as a divorcee would not be allowed to marry in church without special dispensation. Remember the British system is essentially two parts, the religious ceremony and the civil signing of the register. That usually takes place in a small room separate from the church service. The priest acts as the civil Registrar to perform the religious vows as an alternative to the declaration manadated in civil services, they then sign the Marriage certificate as a “person authorised to conduct marriages”. Nothing precludes a gay couple from receiving a church blessing in exactly the same way as Charles and Camilla married in the Register Office in Windsor and then had a blessing in St Georges Chapel in Windsor Castle.
You will also notice that they are formally called “civil partnerships” to help slip it past the objections of the religious nutters. “Marriage” and “Wedding” are already being used as the BBC piece suggests. In terms of next of kin rights, taxation, pension and other benefits and obligations, the two are exactly equivalent. Members of the armed forces will be able to apply for “married quarters”. Formal dissolution of a partnership involves having to make the same provisions as divorce.
Sounds like I jumped the gun. That’s pretty much how I think things should be done: do your business with the government, and then celebrate in the way that is best for you and yours. Thanks for the clarification!
A Wal-Mart subsidiary endorsing gay marriage is almost like having Dick Cheney say that Halliburton should be investigated. Strange happenings.