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Same-sex marriage has been legal in the Isle of Man since 22 July 2016. Legislation to open marriage to same-sex couples passed the House of Keys on 8 March 2016 and the Legislative Council on 26 April. It received royal assent on 13 July and took effect on 22 July. The Isle of Man was the first Crown Dependency of the United Kingdom to legalise same-sex marriage.
The Isle of Man has recognised same-sex civil partnerships providing several, but not all, of the rights and benefits of marriage since 6 April 2011.
As of 2005, couples who have entered into a civil partnership in the United Kingdom are recognised by the Department of Health and Social Care for pension purposes. The other rights of a civil partnership were not provided. [1] In March 2009, Chief Minister Tony Brown announced that civil partnerships, known in Manx as commeeys theayagh (pronounced [kʰoˈmiːstθiə̯x] ), [2] or shesheeys theayagh (pronounced [ʃɛˈʒiːstθiə̯x] ), would be introduced in the Isle of Man in October 2009. This bill would be modelled on the UK one, providing same-sex couples with nearly all of the rights and responsibilities of marriage. [3]
In February 2010, the civil partnership bill was introduced by the Manx Government and had its first reading in the House of Keys. [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] The bill was passed 19 to 3 in its second reading on 30 March. [9] [10] Further progress towards the passage of the bill was due to have taken place on 27 April, but was delayed for technical reasons. [11] The bill passed the clauses stage on 25 May, [12] [13] and was approved in its third reading on 22 June. [14] [15] On 29 June, the bill had its first reading in the Legislative Council. [16] It passed second reading on 26 October, [17] the clauses stage on 9 November, [18] and third reading on 23 November. [19] The legislation was signed into law on 15 March 2011 by Lieutenant Governor Paul Haddacks, [20] [21] and took effect on 6 April 2011. [22] [23]
Same-sex marriages from England, Wales and Scotland were recognised as civil partnerships on the island from 2014 until legalisation in July 2016. [24] In 2016, along with the legalisation of same-sex marriage, civil partnerships were opened to opposite-sex couples. [25]
On 9 June 2015, Chief Minister Allan Bell announced his intention to repeal the law barring same-sex marriage on the island. [26] On 21 July, Bell ruled out holding a referendum on the issue. [27] [28] On 2 October 2015, the Chief Minister announced a public consultation on the issue to take place between 15 October and 13 November, with a bill allowing same-sex couples to marry to be introduced to Tynwald in 2016, depending on the results of the consultation. [29] [30] [31] [32] [33] [34] In November 2015, Bell announced that the same-sex marriage bill would have its first reading in Tynwald in December 2015 and would be implemented in 2016. [35] On 19 December, Bell said that the bill would be submitted to the House of Keys in January, with the intention of having the law take effect by summer 2016. [36] The government response to the public consultation was published on 22 January, with the Council of Ministers recommending that the bill be promptly introduced to the House of Keys for consideration. [37] [38] [39]
The bill had its first reading in the House of Keys on 2 February 2016. [40] [41] [42] On 9 February, the bill passed its second reading by a 18–4 vote. [43] [44]
Political affiliation | Voted for | Voted against | Abstained/Not present |
---|---|---|---|
Independent | |||
Liberal Vannin Party | - | - | |
Total | 18 | 4 | 2 |
The measure passed the clauses stage on 1 March. [46] [47] [48] Several amendments which would have allowed registrars to opt out of conducting same-sex marriages were rejected. One amendment the House did agree to was an amendment to allow opposite-sex couples to enter into civil partnerships. [46] [47] [48] Consequently, the bill was renamed the Marriage and Civil Partnership (Amendment) Bill 2016. [46] [49] On 8 March, the bill was approved in its third reading in a 17–3 vote. [50] [51]
Political affiliation | Voted for | Voted against | Abstained/Not present |
---|---|---|---|
Independent | |||
Liberal Vannin Party | - | - | |
Total | 17 | 3 | 4 |
On 22 March, the bill passed its first reading in the Legislative Council in a 6–3 vote. [53] [54] On 12 April, the bill passed through both the second reading, in a 5–3 vote, and the clauses stage, with three amendments proposed by Attorney General John Quinn. [55] The bill was approved in its final reading on 26 April by a vote of 6–3. [56] [57] [58]
Political affiliation | Voted for | Voted against | Abstained/Not present |
---|---|---|---|
Elected members | 6
| - | |
Ex-officio members | - | 2
| |
Total | 6 | 3 | 2 |
On 10 May, the House of Keys approved the council's amendments in a unanimous 22 to 0 vote. [62]
The bill was signed in Tynwald Court on 21 June, officially becoming the Marriage and Civil Partnership (Amendment) Act 2016 (Manx : Slattys Poosee as Shesheeys Theayagh (Lhiasaghey) 2016, [63] pronounced [ˈslaðəspʰuːˈziːasʃɛˈʒiːstθiə̯xˈlʲazaɣə] ). [64] [65] Some media reported that the bill was expected to be promulgated on 5 July, but it was delayed due a legal challenge lodged with the Privy Council. However, the Cabinet Office stated that the bill would receive royal assent in the Privy Council, and be officially proclaimed during the Tynwald sitting on 19 July. [66] The Chief Minister said that the UK European Union membership referendum was the reason for the delay, and that the law would take effect on 22 July. [67] The law indeed received royal assent by Lieutenant Governor Adam Wood in the Privy Council on 13 July and was proclaimed on 19 July. [68] [69] [70] [71] It took effect three days later. [72] [73] The first same-sex marriage to be registered on the Isle of Man was that of Marc and Alan Steffan-Cowell, who converted their civil partnership into a marriage on 25 July 2016. [74] The first same-sex marriage ceremony on the island occurred on 30 July between Luke Carine and Zak Tomlinson in the coastal town of Ramsey. [75] [76]
In August 2023, Tanya Marie August-Hanson announced her intention to introduce legislation granting automatic recognition to same-sex parents of a child born after fertility treatment. Currently, only the biological parent is automatically recognised on the child's birth certificate. The proposal would bring the Isle of Man's laws in line with the United Kingdom's Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 . [77]
There were 351 marriages performed on the Isle of Man in 2018, of which 6 (1.7%) were between same-sex couples. [78]
The second largest Christian denomination on the island, the Methodist Church of Great Britain, has allowed its ministers to conduct same-sex marriages since 2021. The Methodist Conference voted 254 to 46 in favour of the move in June 2021. A freedom of conscience clause allows ministers with objections to opt out of performing same-sex weddings. [79] [80] In November 2023, two congregations of the Methodist Church, the Trinity Methodist Church and the Promenade Methodist Church, both in Douglas, announced they would be performing same-sex marriages in their local churches. [81] [82] [83]
The smaller United Reformed Church has allowed its churches to perform same-sex marriages since 2016. [84]
Tynwald, or more formally, the High Court of Tynwald or Tynwald Court, is the legislature of the Isle of Man. It consists of two chambers, known as the branches of Tynwald: the directly elected House of Keys and the indirectly chosen Legislative Council. When the two chambers sit together, they become "Tynwald Court".
The Legislative Council is the upper chamber of Tynwald, the legislature of the Isle of Man. The abbreviation "LegCo" is often used.
Same-sex marriage has been legal in Ireland since 16 November 2015. A referendum on 22 May 2015 amended the Constitution of Ireland to provide that marriage is recognised irrespective of the sex of the partners. The measure was signed into law by the President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins, as the Thirty-fourth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland on 29 August 2015. The Marriage Act 2015, passed by the Oireachtas on 22 October 2015 and signed into law by the Presidential Commission on 29 October 2015, gave legislative effect to the amendment. Same-sex marriages in Ireland began being recognised from 16 November 2015, and the first marriage ceremonies of same-sex couples in Ireland occurred the following day. Ireland was the eighteenth country in the world and the eleventh in Europe to allow same-sex couples to marry nationwide.
Same-sex marriage is legal in all parts of the United Kingdom. As marriage is a devolved legislative matter, different parts of the United Kingdom legalised at different times; it has been recognised and performed in England and Wales since March 2014, in Scotland since December 2014, and in Northern Ireland since January 2020. Civil partnerships, which offer most, but not all, of the rights and benefits of marriage, have been recognised since 2005. The United Kingdom was the 27th country in the world and the sixteenth in Europe to allow same-sex couples to marry nationwide.
The Isle of Man partially elects its legislature at the national level. The High Court of Tynwald consists of two chambers. The House of Keys has 24 members, elected in a general election for a five-year term in 12 two-seat constituencies. Each voter has two votes and in each constituency the two candidates with the most votes are elected. The Legislative Council has 11 members: three ex-officio members and eight other members who are elected by the House of Keys for a five-year term. Political parties do not play an important role on the Island. The Isle of Man lowered its voting age from 18 to 16 in 2006.
This article contains a timeline of significant events regarding same-sex marriage and legal recognition of same-sex couples worldwide. It begins with the history of same-sex unions during ancient times, which consisted of unions ranging from informal and temporary relationships to highly ritualized unions, and continues to modern-day state-recognized same-sex marriage. Events concerning same-sex marriages becoming legal in a country or in a country's state are listed in bold.
Michael is one of the six sheadings of the Isle of Man. It is located on the west of the island and consists of the three historic parishes of Ballaugh, Jurby and Michael.
The Council of Ministers is the principal executive organ of the Isle of Man Government. Its role is similar to, though not identical with, that of the Cabinet in the United Kingdom. Until 1990, its title was the Executive Council.
Same-sex marriage has been legal in Australia since 9 December 2017. Legislation to allow it, the Marriage Amendment Act 2017, passed the Australian Parliament on 7 December 2017 and received royal assent from Governor-General Peter Cosgrove the following day. The law came into effect on 9 December, immediately recognising overseas same-sex marriages. The first same-sex wedding under Australian law was held on 15 December 2017. The passage of the law followed a voluntary postal survey of all Australians, in which 61.6% of respondents supported legalisation of same-sex marriage.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in the British Crown dependency of the Isle of Man have evolved substantially since the early 2000s. Private and consensual acts of male homosexuality on the island were decriminalised in 1992. LGBT rights have been extended and recognised in law since then, such as an equal age of consent (2006), employment protection from discrimination (2006), gender identity recognition (2009), the right to enter into a civil partnership (2011), the right to adopt children (2011) and the right to enter into a civil marriage (2016).
Same-sex marriage has been legal in Jersey since 1 July 2018. The States Assembly passed a bill allowing same-sex couples to marry on 1 February 2018. Royal assent was granted on 23 May 2018, and the law took effect on 1 July.
Same-sex marriage is legal in the following countries: Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, the United States, Uruguay, Estonia, Greece and Nepal
The rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in the Australian state of South Australia are advanced and well-established. South Australia has had a chequered history with respect to the rights of LGBT people. Initially, the state was a national pioneer of LGBT rights in Australia, being the first in the country to decriminalise homosexuality and to introduce a non-discriminatory age of consent for all sexual activity. Subsequently, the state fell behind other Australian jurisdictions in areas including relationship recognition and parenting, with the most recent law reforms regarding the recognition of same-sex relationships, LGBT adoption and strengthened anti-discrimination laws passed in 2016 and went into effect in 2017.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in the British Overseas Territory of the Falkland Islands enjoy most of the same rights as non-LGBT people. Marriage and civil partnerships have been open to both opposite-sex and same-sex couples since 29 April 2017. Discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation is constitutionally banned. Additionally, attitudes are largely positive; a public consultation found that 90% of respondents were in favour of same-sex marriage.
The Marriage Act 2013 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which introduced same-sex marriage in England and Wales.
Kathleen Joan "Kate" Costain is a Manx politician who is a former Leader of the Liberal Vannin Party and was a Member of the House of Keys for Douglas South from 2011 to 2020. She changed her surname from Beecroft to Costain in 2019.
The Isle of Man is a Crown Dependency located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland with a population in 2015 estimated to be approximately 88,000. It enjoys a high degree of domestic, legislative and political autonomy through its ancient Parliament Tynwald. By convention, the United Kingdom Government is responsible for the conduct of the international relations and defence of the island. The Isle of Man does not have a written constitution, or a Bill of Rights which sets out its Human Rights. These rights are addressed in the Human Rights Act 2001. The island has also ratified a number of international treaties.
Same-sex marriage is legal in all parts of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, a Crown Dependency of the United Kingdom. Legislation to open marriage to same-sex couples in Guernsey was passed by the States of Guernsey on 21 September 2016, and took effect on 2 May 2017. Same-sex marriage laws took effect in Alderney on 14 June 2018, and Sark on 23 April 2020.
This is a list of notable events in the history of LGBT rights that took place in the year 2016.
Robert Howard Quayle is the former chief minister for the Isle of Man, between 4 October 2016 and 12 October 2021. He previously served as the minister for Health and Social Care, until the elections in September 2016.