A senior family law judge has accused the government of excessive preoccupation with gay marriage.
Baroness Butler-Sloss is a former President of the Family Division of the High Court and a leading legal authority. She told the Telegraph that the government should be more concerned with the introduction of legislation to protect the financial interests of cohabiting couples.
The current absence of such legal protection was “profoundly unfair”, she claimed.
“[I cannot understand] why the Government is faffing around with gay marriage when they need to be righting a wrong.”
The Baroness, 79, said she was personally uneasy with the concept of gay marriage but stressed her reservations were not motivated by prejudice.
“I have always spoken in favour of gay relationships and the rights of gay people. This does seem to me a different issue and one which attacks marriage.”
The function of marriage is the procreation of children, she claimed.
“I think [gay marriage] is a destruction of the word ‘marriage’, which has been understood for many years to mean what the Christians say it does. It would not only affect Christians but it would affect Muslims, Jews, Hindus, Sikhs and all the other religions.”
Baroness Butler-Sloss also criticised the absence of a concept of adultery from the same sex marriage legislation and claimed that gay marriage would provide couples with no additional rights on divorce beyond those already available within civil partnerships.
