Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I do not intend to oppose this legislation, some aspects of which I welcome. I am concerned, however, that, in other aspects, it is leading us along a dangerous path. I will explain the reasoning behind that observation as I proceed. The list of religions already authorised to solemnise marriage reflects the increasingly diverse nature of our society. I have attended a good number of marriage services in my time, both religious and humanist, and found that each one was conducted in an appropriate fashion. Some of what we are discussing in regard to this legislation might be more appropriate as part of a broader discussion on the Constitution. The constitutional convention that is due to be established would be an appropriate forum in that regard, but I understand this is not one of the issued tabled for discussion.

I welcome the Bill in so far as it accommodates humanists in this country, but it is nevertheless a somewhat bizarre item of legislation. We are told that the purpose of the Bill is to extend the facility to perform the function of marriage solemniser to secular bodies. As it stands, Health Service Executive employees and members of religious bodies are the only persons permitted to perform that function. In that context, it is bizarre that the HSE does not allow staff engaged in this role to work at weekends, which is when most people prefer to have their marriage service. If there is a requirement for a higher fee to be charged for weekend services, so be it. That type of accommodation might have addressed many of the concerns that have given rise to this legislation without allowing the devil and all, as it were, the facility to perform the function of solemniser.

The definition of a "secular body" around which the entire Bill is based is problematic. Specifically, it is somewhat ridiculous that a definition should contain within itself the word it aims to define. The definition in section 3 provides, inter alia, that a body will be deemed to be secular if it is an "organised group of people" and its principal objectives are "secular, ethical and humanist". Nowhere in the Bill, however, is there a definition of what is meant by "secular". Likewise, "ethical" or "humanist" are not defined. Just as there are dangers in going down the route of being overly descriptive, there are also dangers when legislation is not properly descriptive.

It is also a matter of concern when a definition relies heavily on references to what it is not rather than what it is. Unfortunately, that is a characteristic of a great deal of legislation. In this instance, the definition of "secular body" in section 3 goes on to articulate a long list of types of bodies that are not secular. The problem is that many of these would, in fact, be deemed secular according to most people's understanding of the word, including, for example, trade unions and bodies which promote political causes. Here again is a certain vagueness in that the concept of "political causes" is not defined. The Humanist Association of Ireland will be one of the main beneficiaries of the provisions in this Bill, which is welcome, but a quick perusal of its website suggests that even this organisation might not satisfy the definition of "secular body" as contained in section 3, with specific reference to the exclusion of any body promoting a political cause. Its home page, for example, has a campaigns section, one of which is aimed at lobbying politicians to amend the principal Act. Ironically, that very activity could be seen to exclude the organisation under the definition set out in section 3 of the Bill. The content of the website is inherently political, including, for instance, a cheap shot at politicians in respect of holiday entitlements. There is also an inference that Fianna Fáil is bad and the Labour Party good. In fact, Senator Ivana Bacik is described as the perfect combination of lawyer, Senator and atheist. It is fine to express such views but they are undoubtedly political. Perhaps Senator Bacik will become the deity of the Humanist Association of Ireland in the future. To avoid any confusion here, let me clarify that I am joking on that last point.

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