{"id":5173,"date":"2013-01-12T11:07:06","date_gmt":"2013-01-12T11:07:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/?p=5173"},"modified":"2013-01-12T19:06:07","modified_gmt":"2013-01-12T19:06:07","slug":"2013jan12fox","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/index.php\/2013jan12fox\/","title":{"rendered":"Former Minister attacks ‘Quadruple Lock’"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Liam<\/a>
Dr Liam Fox MP (Photo by Thomas Solberg)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A former minister has attacked the Governments’ gay marriage proposals<\/a><\/strong> as ‘divisive, ill thought through and constitutionally wrong’ in a letter to constituents.<\/p>\n

Liam Fox MP said the proposed legislation would appease only a ‘a very small, if vocal, minority’ and risked alienating Christians, whom he described as ‘a large stabilising and normally acquiescent section of this country’.<\/p>\n

Mr Fox singled out the so-called ‘quadruple lock’ under which the Church of England and the Church in Wales will be specifically prohibited from conducting gay marriages.<\/p>\n

The ‘Quadruple Lock’ would:<\/p>\n

1 Ensure the legislation states explicitly that no religious organisation, or individual minister, can be compelled to marry same-sex couples or to permit this to happen on their premises;
\n2 Provide an \u2018opt-in\u2019 system for religious organisations who wish to conduct marriages for same-sex couples;
\n3 Amend the Equality Act 2010 to reflect that no discrimination claims can be brought against religious organisations or individual ministers for refusing to marry a same-sex couple or allowing their premises to be used for this purpose; and
\n4 Ensure that the legislation will not affect the Canon law of the Churches of England or the Church in Wales who will thereby not be allowed to ‘opt in’ under point 2.<\/p>\n

But Mr Fox said: ‘Banning the Church of England from what would be an otherwise legal activity is anomalous and absurd. If the “exemption” is, as stated, because the Church had made clear their objection to same-sex marriage then why not exempt the Catholic church, which has been even clearer in its opposition?<\/p>\n

‘The idea of making certain practices illegal for one Christian church, but not others, risks further weakening and splintering Britain’s traditional religion at a time when many Christians feel that they are under threat on a number of secular, political and cultural fronts.’<\/p>\n

This\u00a0legal anomaly, he said, could allow the European court of human rights to ‘drive a coach and horses through the legislation’.<\/p>\n

Christian Voice has urged other denominations to press the Government to be included in the ‘Quadruple Lock’, not that we believe it will make any difference to the European Court when it considers the matter, as it undoubtedly will.<\/p>\n

In its response to the consultation, the Government said homosexual couples would not need to consummate their ‘marriages’, tacitly acknowledging that they lack the full set of equipment to do so. \u00a0Nor would a homosexual be able to commit adultery within a ‘gay marriage’, unless it was in the normal way with a person of the opposite sex. \u00a0No ‘lesser act of sexual gratification’, which covers homosexual practice, can in law amount to adultery.<\/p>\n

The Government also propose to amend marriage vows so that homosexual couples are ‘referred to as \u2018husband\u2019 and \u2018husband\u2019, or \u2018wife\u2019 and \u2018wife\u2019 for legal purposes.\u2019 \u00a0Where that leaves ‘butch and femme’ homosexual relationships, where one party adopts a male role and the other a female, has not been addressed.<\/p>\n

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See previous Christian Voice articles:<\/p>\n