Marriage in Scotland
The Scottish government’s decision to press ahead with redefining marriage in a gay marriage bill is an assault on religious freedom and a lawyer’s charter, Colin Hart has warned.
Mr Hart said, ‘This is a crazy decision and shows that Mr Salmond has failed to grasp the importance of marriage as an institution and that redefining its meaning will have profound consequences for both Scotland and the rest of the UK.
‘He has ignored his own public consultation, which showed that the vast majority of people are against letting politicians meddle with the meaning of marriage’.
He said that tinkering with the fabric of society would have ‘profound consequences’, adding: ‘It is particularly worrying that the Scottish government has chosen to proceed, even though it doesn’t have the legal powers to protect those who support the traditional meaning of marriage from being sued for their deeply held religious, or philosophical beliefs’.
Mr Hart said this decision is a lawyer’s charter and raises the spectre of priests, imams, registrars and others being hauled off to court because of their beliefs.
