John Gormley has acknowledged there are significant differences between Fianna Fáil and the Greens over the Civil Partnership Bill.
The Green Party leader said he accepted the rights bestowed by civil partnerships were limited and that the forthcoming legislation would not satisfy everyone.
In a speech at the launch of this year’s Pride festival programme in Dublin this evening, Mr Gormley insisted his party remained committed to marriage equality for all.
“However, in light of the current make up of the Dáil, where the two largest parties oppose marriage equality, we genuinely believe that legislating now for civil partnerships is the best way of recognising and protecting the thousands of same-sex relationships in the State,” he said.
Mr Gormley said the Bill did not represent the full equality his party was seeking, but he claimed it was a step towards full equality.
He said: “It is also of real practical value in itself and will make a real difference to the daily lives of many people in committed relationships”.
The Government is due to publish its Civil Partnership Bill in the coming weeks.
The legislation is expected to give same-sex couples the same rights as married couples in a range of areas such as property, social welfare, succession, maintenance, pensions and tax.
However, it is not expected to include provisions to allow same-sex couples to be considered as joint adoptive parents.
In his speech, Mr Gormley acknowledged there had been significant delays in the publication of the Bill.
He said work on the proposed legislation had been “demanding and painstaking”.
“But rather than push ahead regardless, we felt that it was better to delay publication and try to ensure the best outcome,” he said.
