The Government will change the law to allow opposite-sex couples
in England and Wales to enter into a civil partnership.
Under the current system, same-sex couples can choose to marry or
register for a civil partnership whereas opposite-sex couples can
only get married.
Extending civil partnerships to opposite-sex couples will not
only address this imbalance, it will also provide greater
security for couples who want to gain legal recognition for their
relationship.
There are over 3.3 million unmarried couple families in the
UK living together with shared financial responsibilities
and nearly half of them with children. These households do not
have the same legal protections as those who have a civil
partnership or marriage.
Prime Minister said: “This change in the law
helps protect the interests of opposite-sex couples who want to
commit, want to formalise their relationship but don't
necessarily want to get married. As Home Secretary, I was proud
to sponsor the legislation that created equal marriage. Now, by
extending civil partnerships, we are making sure that all
couples, be they same-sex or opposite-sex, are given the same
choices in life.”
Equalities Minster, , said: “This is an important
step forward for equality. There are all sorts of reasons why
people may choose not to marry. By giving couples this
option we hope to give them and their families more certainty and
security.
I pay tribute to all who have campaigned for this change and will
introduce the change as swiftly as possible.”
Extending civil partnerships to opposite-sex couples will
provide a positive alternative for couples who might not have
legally committed to each other otherwise.
The ability for couples to formalise their relationship
encourages greater commitment, leading to greater family
stability and greater security within relationships to help
protect children’s interests.
Many unmarried couples in a long-standing relationship believe
that they have acquired rights similar to those of married
couples but in fact there is no such thing as ‘common law
marriage’, no matter how long a couple have lived together, even
if they have children together.
This means cohabiting partners are not eligible for tax reliefs
and exemptions for spouses and civil partners, including the
inheritance tax exemption and the marriage income tax allowance.
In addition, a surviving cohabitant has no automatic right to
inherit their partner’s estate, meaning they might not be able to
afford to stay in the family home.
Bereavement Support Payments do not apply to cohabiting couples;
a cohabitant does not benefit from their partner’s contributions
for the purposes of state pensions and many occupational pension
schemes do not provide the same survivor benefits to such
couples.
Nor do unmarried couples have a guaranteed right to ownership of
each other’s property on relationship breakdown. (A court may
determine the shares based on the individual circumstances of
their financial arrangements.)
There are a number of legal issues to consider, across pension
and family law, and the Government will now consult on the
technical detail.
ENDS
Notes to Editors
-
· Same-sex
couples in England and Wales can either get married or
enter a civil partnership, whereas opposite-sex couples can only
get married. Same-sex civil partnerships became law in 2004.
In 2014, same-sex couples were allowed to enter into a marriage.
In June 2018, the Supreme Court ruled that the 2004 Act was
incompatible with the European Convention on Human
Rights. In May 2018, the Government initiated a review to
gather evidence on this issue. The Scottish
Government last week published an open consultation
paper on this issue.
- · There
are over 3.3 million unmarried couple families in
the UK, living together with shared financial responsibilities
and nearly half of them with children. These households do
not have the same legal protections that those who have a formal
civil partnership or marriage (across inheritance tax, state
pensions, maintenance and financial services). There is no
such thing as ‘common law marriage’ in England and Wales.
