Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill

Richard Fuller Excerpts

Tuesday 5th February 2013 Commons Chamber

[Richard Fuller (Bedford) (Con)]

I am grateful for having caught your eye, Mr Speaker. You know, Sir, that although it caused the Prime Minister a spot of bother, he was absolutely right to bring forward and raise the principle enshrined in this Bill. One need only look at the number of European countries adopting same-sex marriage and President Obama’s statement in the United States to understand that this issue had to be addressed, and not judged. The Bill contains a noble ambition. It is one that I share, but I shall not be joining my colleagues in the Aye Lobby this evening. In this House of sharply expressed opinions on both sides, perhaps I may take a moment to explain my position.

As many speakers have said, the issue for gay people in this country has changed dramatically over many years. In my lifetime it has gone from a situation where homosexuality was not recognised in the public square, through a childhood where the absence of understanding of that issue was as loud as any absence can be, through a recognition that when one came of age the very act of having sex could lead to the catching of a contagious illness, and through a period when there was a recognition that that illness could lead to loved ones and friends dying. It has also led in the political sphere to political opponents using one’s sexual orientation as a weapon to seek to achieve the accumulation of votes, notwithstanding what their party might say is its abiding principle. Out of that period—significantly, perhaps, from the period of the reaction to HIV and AIDS—came the power for the recognition of same-sex couples having unions. This country, the previous Government and my right hon. Friend the Member for Rutland and Melton (Mr Duncan) should be enormously proud of their role in bringing civil partnerships into legislation. I am enormously proud of what that means, now that I can talk to a young man—who will, I am sure, very shortly be in this place—about how important it is for him to see that he can marry his partner.

All that has taught me that, although it is important that I speak in this debate, it is as important that I listen. When one receives so many observations from one’s constituents of deeply held views, it is important for all Members to have some humility before they vote based on their own opinions. Many of those expressions have been based on a religious belief. We should understand that faith matters and we ignore the subtlety of the sinews of faith that operate in our public square if we seek to push to one side people’s concerns and objections.

We might ultimately decide that we should pass the Bill, and I certainly hope that we can, but I hope that my right hon. Friend the Minister for Women and Equalities will recognise that there are concerns about the anomalies and the possible ramifications. As my hon. Friend the Member for Stourbridge (Margot James) said, many of them come from a misunderstanding of what the Bill contains. I also ask my right hon. Friend the Minister to consider the fact that President Obama made his position clear before he went into an election. That might not be possible in this instance, but if we want to achieve a long-standing and permanent change to the meaning of marriage, she must consider whether it might be necessary.