Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)

I could say the same about Senator Terry and question her on the same point but it would be equally unjustified.

I acknowledge on behalf of the Government that the position before the law of same sex couples, and others in caring relationships, including extending State recognition to civil partnerships between such persons, needs to be addressed. We cannot walk away from, ignore or postpone this issue.

Society has changed greatly over recent decades and the law must be kept up to date with the needs of society while at the same time preserving all that is of value in what we have, and respecting the Constitution by which we all are bound. Anybody who sees a constitutional dimension in this issue should participate in the All-party Committee on the Constitution and not pretend that this issue can be dealt with on a non-constitutional level.

Senator Kett rightly identified two aspects of this Bill which cause difficulty. I agree with Senator Terry in that the analysis available to the Government is that section 6 is contrary to the Constitution and would be struck down by the courts. I acknowledge that, as Senator Norris says, the Law Reform Commission takes a different view but the advisers to Senator Terry and to the Government take the view that on a detailed analysis the proposal in this section is contrary to the Constitution.

Senator Kett's second point, with which I agree, is that this proposed legislation is restricted to "conjugal relations". Therefore, two friends, or sisters, or any two people who have spent their lives together caring for one another and sharing their home are excluded by the language in section 3.

In the context of sexuality are two people who have a non-sexual relationship to be substantially discriminated against because theirs is a non-sexual relationship? If not, the definition of a civil partnership in section 3, which makes a sexual conjugal relationship a necessary precondition for a civil partnership, is discriminatory. We must consider this carefully. These are two points of principle and not of conservatism. They have a significant import. Are we creating a new set of relationships based on a sexual underpinning or are we willing to accord civil partnership status to people who have no sexual relationship?