Court of Appeal removes justification for equal marriage discrimination

April 07, 2020 1 min read

Court of Appeal removes justification for equal marriage discrimination

Tuesday 07 April 2020

Clare Bailey MLA has commented on the Court of Appeal judgement on the prohibition of marriage equality delivered today. 

The Green Party NI Leader said: “Firstly, I’m delighted for the couples who embarked on this legal challenge, showing bravery and a commitment to what they knew was right.

“The Court held that the ban on same sex marriage represented discrimination against those couples and that a fair balance between tradition and personal rights had not been struck. 

Clare Bailey MLA concluded: “The judgement is important in that it recognises that discrimination was present and removed any justification for it. 

“The Court has affirmed that personal or religious beliefs cannot be used as a fig leaf for discrimination. 

“We are a far way from equality in many and various aspects of our society, But today, decades of discrimination against people in same sex relationships has been recognised and any justification for that removed.”

ENDS

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