Rónán Mullen (Independent) | Oireachtas source

We know that some Muslims hold that view. It is all about sharing the love.

Assuming the referendum passes, let us take as an example the case of a small business which is asked to provide a particular type of catering service that would have the couple who own the business assume a hands-on role at a celebrity same-sex marriage. If the couple were to decide they preferred not to provide the service because they have a particular conviction about what some people view as the traditional definition of marriage, would their decision be discriminatory on the gender ground or the marital status ground in the new dispensation? It is hard to imagine how they could be said to be discriminating on the marital status ground because they are not refusing to provide a service on the basis of marriage but instead do not want to be seen to endorse a particular type of marriage. In that case, would it be discrimination on the gender ground because two people of the same gender are involved? I presume the Minister and her officials have thought through all of these issues. What would and should happen to the couple? Should they be prosecuted by the equality authorities on the gender ground or the marital status ground?What kind of penalty would they be subject to? Would that situation be affected by this referendum? That is what I am asking. This is a real-life scenario, involving a small business, a catering service, and a same-sex marriage ceremony and related celebrations. They wish the best to those people. They say, "The best of good luck to those people, but we have a different view and we would like not to be involved in the provision of that service. There are plenty of other service providers. We are willing to forgo the business because we want to honour the need to be publicly consistent with what we actually believe. Whether or not it is a religious belief is none of anybody's business. It is our belief. It is a belief that has been supported for a long time, and continues to be supported by many people, that there is a social good in marriage being defined as a man-woman relationship. We do not wish to push that down anybody's throats, but we do not want the contrary to be pushed down ours." What should happen to those people in that real-life scenario, in the Minister's view, what would happen to them and what change would this referendum make to what would happen to them if my amendment is not accepted?