BRITAIN: Same-Sex Marriage Bill Set To Be Introduced Next Year

Pink News has the latest word:

Same-sex couples in England and Wales are set to be allowed to marry, under plans announced today by Culture Secretary Maria Miller in the House of Commons. Following a government consultation, legislation allowing same-sex marriages will be brought forward next year. Although the Catholic Church and Church of England is opposed to equal marriage, faith groups such as the Quakers, Unitarians and Liberal Judaism support marriage rights for gay couples and have stated they would like to provide the ceremonies. Mrs Miller said the proposals are designed to create watertight protections for religious organisations that do not want to conduct same-sex marriages, but will allow them to ‘opt in’ if they so chose.

The House of Commons is continuing to argue about the details.  At this writing the Guardian is running a quite lively live-blog.  It appears that the consummation issue has been resolved:

Maria Miller expects same sex marriage law in place by early 2014 with 60 % of Tory MPs at present backing her plans. Bill in January. Any same sex marriage conducted by CoE vicar, if CoE collectively opposed to such marriages, will not be recognised in law. Grounds for divorce in a same sex marriage will include adultery, but non-consummation will not be grounds for annulling a same sex marriage. There are footnotes in consultation paper on same sex marriage about "lesser acts of sexual gratification" that are quite vivid for HMG.

And then there's this: