If very significant legal change is to take place relating to same-sex partnerships, it must have a broad measure of support across society, according to the Minister for Justice. Michael McDowell was addressing the conference on the legal status of same-sex and cohabiting couples.
Before he began, he was heckled by a small group of protesters from the Ancient Order of Hibernians, who had turned up at the conference and sat in the front row. They shouted at the Minister and threw a copy of the Constitution at him, hitting him in the chest. Gardaí were called, but the protesters left as other participants called on them to go.
Mr McDowell said that a political consensus was emerging towards legislating in this area, and he was committed to building on this consensus by legislating during the lifetime of this Government.
Anne Colley, chairwoman of the working group on the issue set up by the Minister, told the conference it had received 170 separate submissions so far, 46 from groups and organisations and 124 from individuals.
It had also received approximately 4,000 campaign-type submissions on standardised forms from people opposed to any change.
Eoin Collins, director of policy change at the Gay and Lesbian Equality Network, said recent economic and social progress had increased confidence and raised the expectations of Irish people, including gays and lesbians.
They now aspired to the principle of equality, including in the area of access to marriage.The chief executive of the Equality Authority, Niall Crowley, said that there was a difference between treating the issue as a matter of fairness and treating it as a matter of equality. Fairness might remove certain specific disadvantages, without addressing their root causes.