Susan O'Keeffe (Labour)

I welcome the Minister and the members of the Humanist Association of Ireland who have joined us today. I am delighted to welcome this Bill to amend the Civil Registration Act 2004, the Act that regulates the registration of civil marriages. As my colleague, Senator Bacik, indicated, the figures reveal very clearly that an increasing number of people are seeking a non-religious or civil wedding ceremony. The figures have increased quite dramatically and although they relate only to 2006, it is clear that trend is rising, as are the recent CSO figures of people stating "no faith" when asked about religious beliefs.

As legislators, it is our task, in part, to reflect the changes in society and to respond to them. Where there are groups of people whose habits and needs are changing, it is for us, in this House, to try to find ways to accommodate them.

The Seanad has a long tradition as a forum for bringing forward progressive social reforms. Many Senators, including well-known Senators, such as former Senators Mary Robinson and Mary Henry, and Senator Norris have used the Seanad as a forum to express progressive views that might not have received an airing otherwise in the Oireachtas. Mary Robinson, in particular, used the Seanad as a forum to bring forward legislation on contraception in the 1970s and divorce in the 1980s. It seems strange in 2011 to remember those times when those were difficult issues. The debates on the Private Members' Bills that she proposed on these issues played an important part in changing public opinion on what were contentious matters. Ultimately, the Seanad debates paved the way for later legalisation on both contraception and divorce.

During her time as a Senator, Mary Henry, brought forward Private Members' legislation on the regulation of IVF and assisted human reproduction and her work on developing mental capacity legislation was hugely important. Similarly, the concept of civil partnership and the debate on the need to provide legal recognition for gay couples were first raised in the Seanad by Senator Norris, paving the way for the eventual passage of the Civil Partnership Act in 2010 - in effect, paving the way for equality for our citizens. Climate change legislation was first debated in the Seanad and women's participation in Parliament was also first debated in this House and, indeed, has not yet specifically been debated in the Dáil. There is a tradition in this House of debating matters which often prove difficult.

Today, we have the opportunity to amend existing legislation and in so doing, to be more inclusive and to build our national capacity for tolerance, fairness and equality. I believe in an inclusive society where we reach out to different communities and include their beliefs.

The argument could and might be made that existing churches or faiths are weakened when this kind of legislation is introduced. I believe existing traditional faiths are strengthened by including the beliefs of others and not weakened because acknowledging and accepting the right and role of other belief systems of whatever kind is a sign of strength, of confidence, of maturity on the part of more mainstream churches, of their respect and of our respect for each other.

It is also a sign that our country is growing up slowly under the shadow of a more traditional past. The "them and us" society, in which many of us grew up in terms of religious belief, was very divisive. It is always divisive when there is a "them and us" as one group always views the other across a divide.

By amending legislation such as this, we grow the "we" - we literally create a greater us and a lesser them and in so doing, we show a respect for the varying and different traditions. That is something we grow each time we change these laws. Each time we do so we acknowledge and include those who share a different faith and we strengthen the pluralist nature of our society and our capacity to share the ceremonies which matter to us all - births, deaths and marriages.

On a more practical note, the registrars operating for the HSE only work Monday to Friday which means that anyone who wants a non-religious civil wedding cannot have a weekend wedding. If they have a non-legally binding commitment ceremony, perhaps with a Humanist solemniser, they then must have an additional legal ceremony during the week. This adds complication not to mention cost to those people who pursue this route. Allowing Humanists and other bodies, which may come forward, to have members registered as celebrants of legal marriage will remove that stress. Those of us who have been involved in marriages know of the stress of organising weddings but this will also reduce the cost.