In Ireland, the Dáil (the parliamentary lower house) has passed the long-expected Civil Partnership Bill, without requiring a vote, and to applause from the public gallery. It is expected that it will pass in the Seanad within a fortnight or so, and is most likely to be signed in the autumn, to come into effect in the new year. The legislation is modelled on the existing British law, which gives couples virtually the same standing in law as married couples, except for the name. In Ireland, the law explicitly does not include adoption rights. There is also provision for a divorce equivalent, on exactly the same terms as existing divorce law.
This will leave Italy and Malta as the only countries in Western Europe with no provision for any form of legal recognition for same sex-partnerships. Resistance in Italy has come on the back of strenuous opposition but the Catholic bishops, but as the Irish example has shown, Church resistance elsewhere has come to nothing. How much longer can Italy hold out?
This will be the state of partnership recognition in Europe after the Irish law takes effect:
(Dark blue - full equality; Light blue - civil unions; Red - constitutional restriction to opposite sex couples only; Yellow - under review)
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