Same sex couples can enter into civil partnerships
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Mixed sex couples will soon have the right to enter a civil partnership in Scotland after MSPs unanimously voted in new legislation.
Scottish Government minister Shirley-Anne Somerville stated the Civil Partnership Bill would help enshrine the principles of equality and freedom of choice for all couples in law.
She said: "It means that – just like same sex couples – mixed sex couples will be able to choose between civil partnership or marriage, whichever they feel is best for them.
Civil partnership in Scotland was introduced for same sex couples by the Civil Partnership Act 2004.
However, in 2018 the UK Supreme Court ruled in an English case that the introduction of same sex marriage had resulted in the Civil Partnership Act 2004 no longer being compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights.
The court argued it was discriminatory because it denied mixed sex couples the opportunity to enter into civil partnerships.
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