PW News every month in 2009

Since 2004 Pink Weddings have been bringing you upto date news on gayweddings in the UK and across the world. We aim to deliver high quality news backed with the knowledge and understanding from an experienced team to help couples when arranging their special day.

If you have anything you would like us to place in our news section feel free to e-mail us at newshound@pinkweddings.biz.

June 09

Irish civil partnerships could be enacted by end of the year
Irish minister for justice Dermot Ahern has said he will soon seek cabinet approval for a civil partnerships bill which could be enacted by the end of the year.

He told the Sunday Business Post that the commitment give state recognition and protection to civil partnerships will be ‘‘implemented in full through the forthcoming Civil Partnership Bill, which I will publish within weeks''. Read the full story

MAY 09

Gay marriage legal in New Hampshire after Governor signs law
John Lynch, the Democrat governor of New Hampshire has confirmed that he would sign into a law to legalise gay marriage.

Earlier this evening (UK time), the House of Representatives voted in favour of gay marriage by198 votes to 176. This was just hours after the Senate voted 14 to 10 in favour of the law. Read more

New York moves closer to gay marriage
The New York Assembly passed a bill last night to legalise gay marriage.

After four hours of debate, the bill passed 89-52 and will now go to the Senate for a vote.

If it passes a Senate vote, it will go to Governor David Paterson, who has clearly signalled he will sign it. The bill would make New York the sixth state to legalise same-sex marriage if New Hampshire does not allow it in the next few days. Read more

Jersey to debate Civil Partnerships
The States of Jersey are to debate civil partnerships, four years after they were made legal in England and Wales.

BBC News reports that although no date has yet been set for the debate, the Council of Ministers has agreed to take the matter to the House later this year. Read more

Maine's governor passes gay marriage bill
Gay marriage is now legal in Maine after Governor John Baldacci signed it into law.

The Governor had previously opposed gay marriage but said in a statement he believed a civil union was not equal to marriage.

The decision makes Maine the fifth US state to legalise gay marriage, after Vermont, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Iowa. Read more

Maine House of Representatives votes in favour of gay marriage
The lower house of Maine's legislature has voted in favour of the state allowing gay marriages. If enacted, Maine would be the fifth state to allow same-sex marriages.

The bill had previously been approved by the state's Senate. It passed in the House of Representatives 89 votes to 57. The bill will now return to the Senate for its final approval Read the full story

Gay marriage becomes legal in Sweden today
A gender-neutral marriage law in Sweden has come into force today, meaning gay couples can now marry in the country in religious or civil ceremonies.

However, they cannot yet get married in church ceremonies. Read the full story

April 09

New York governor confirms introduction of gay marriage bill
David Paterson, the governor of New York, has confirmed he will introduce legislation to make gay marriage legal in the state.

If passed, the bill will make it the fifth state to legalise gay marriage, after Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont and Iowa. Read more

DES MOINES, Iowa — Iowa's Supreme Court legalized gay marriage Friday in a unanimous and emphatic decision that makes Iowa the third state and first in the nation's heartland to allow same-sex couples to wed.

Iowa joins only Massachusetts and Connecticut in permitting same-sex marriage. Read the full story

March 09

Increased rights for Colombian same-sex partners "not automatic"
Gay and lesbian couples in Colombia still face challenges after a ruling granting them increased rights.

The decision by the Constitutional Court means that same-sex partners will now have all of the guarantees and benefits offered to unmarried heterosexual couples, except adoption. Read more

February 09

Hungarian government proposes registered same-sex partnerships
It replaces a previous law on registered partnership that was struck down by the Constitutional Court in December, just weeks before its was due to come into force.

The new bill introduces the institution of registered partnership only for same sex couples and a scheme of domestic partnership registration for both same sex and different sex couples. Support for the bill in the Parliament is still an open question. Read More

Governor of Utah commits to equal rights for same-sex couples
The Republican leader of the US state of Utah has said he backs civil unions for gay and lesbians. According to opinion polls, 70% of Utah citizens oppose civil unions. Read more

Gay Marriage In New York Unlikely in ‘09 or ‘10
Daniel Squadron, the twenty-nine year old freshman New York State Senator, is ready to take the lead on gay marriage in New York. Squadron said his goal was, “making this a law as quickly as possible,” last night at a meeting of the Lambda Independent Democrats of Brooklyn . He came to discuss strategy with leading activists and received plenty of feedback.

However, Squadron is not optimistic about passing gay marriage in the 2009 Senate session and believes that 2010 will be even tougher, due to the election year. “Looking at the members, it's hard to get to thirty-two votes,” he admitted. Thirty-two is the magic number to pass a bill in the New York State Senate. Read more

Civil unions a minefield for Obama
Some fear plan could delay marriage progress; Frank says DOMA repeal unlikely in new president's first term. President Barack Obama's support for legislation to provide all of the federal rights and benefits of marriage to same-sex couples joined in civil unions and other legally recognized relationships has raised concern among some activists that the president's proposal could delay progress on same-sex marriage. Read more

January 09

Civil partnerships bill listed in Irish parliament's spring session
The Irish government has listed a Civil Partnership Bill among legislation for the spring session of Parliament. Read more

Hawaii politicians back civil unions legislation
A new law that would allow gay and lesbian couples in Hawaii to form a civil union has the backing of a majority of state House members. Read more

Swedish proposal on gay marriage presented to parliament
Sweden may allow homosexuals to wed in the Lutheran Church or civil ceremonies as of May if parliament adopts legislation presented to parliament Wednesday, the prime minister 's party said. Read more

Swedish MPs move to legalise gay marriage
A motion tabled in the Swedish parliament and backed by three of the four parties in the coalition government would legalise gay marriage.

"Regardless of sexual orientation, people in stable couple relationships have a need to manifest their feelings and their desire to live together," it reads. Read more

A Maine lawmaker introduced a bill on Tuesday that would allow same-sex marriages in the state
Democratic state Sen. Dennis Damon's bill is entitled "An Act to End Discrimination in Civil Marriage and Affirm Religious Freedoms." It would allow any two people in Maine to apply for a marriage license. Read more

Jersey may become first Crown dependency to introduce civil partnerships
The government of Jersey is to consider the implications of granting same-sex couples the right to enter into civil partnerships.

The Council of Ministers will look at the financial costs of the proposal in the next few months. Read more

New Mexico Moves Closer to Equality
When the New Mexico state legislature re-convenes on January 20, 2009, one of the first bills to be considered is House bill, HB 21, a domestic partnership bill which is sponsored by Rep. Mimi Stewart, D-Albuqurque. Read more

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