Seán Power (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)

I reiterate the Government's approach to enhancing the rights of same-sex couples and cohabitants in general. The Government wants to deliver a framework in which non-married couples, including gay couples, can live in a supportive and a secure legal environment. The Labour Party's Civil Unions Bill 2006 only partly addresses this issue. However, I pay tribute to the Labour Party, especially Deputy Howlin, for bringing forward this Bill tonight. I suspect that many people do not fully appreciate or understand the difficulties that same-sex couples experience in their daily lives. The Tánaiste said last night that it would not be appropriate to address such problems, which are being exacerbated by the current legal uncertainty, in a piecemeal fashion. He argued that it was inadequate to attempt to provide a direct equivalent to marriage for same-sex couples without taking into account the wide range of cohabitation and family models which deserved the protection of the law. The terms of the Bill, as presented, appear to be inconsistent with the terms of the Constitution.

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