Lambeth Town Hall will hold two same-sex ceremonies this weekend.
By Jaskaran Bahia and Rachel Jenkins
Same-sex couples in Lambeth are planning to say ‘I do’ from midnight tonight when it becomes legal for them to marry.
The first of many same-sex marriages will start to take place tonight after the Marriage (Same-Sex Couples) Act was passed last July.
Lambeth Town Hall will hold two same-sex ceremonies over the weekend, Lambeth register office confirmed, while many more will be happening all over England and Wales.
Jamie Heath, assistant manager of Two Brewers gay bar in Clapham, like many, was enthusiastic about the change.
He said: “It’s great news, best thing that’s happened.”
Ruth Hunt, acting chief executive of gay rights charity Stonewall, said to Sky News it would be a momentous day.
“The first weddings will send a powerful message to every person in Britain and around the world that you can live and love as you choose, regardless of your sexual orientation.”
There remains opposition to same-sex marriage. UKIP leader Nigel Farage told LBC radio: “I do not support the idea of same sex marriages, all the while we’re under the auspices of the European Court of Human Rights.”
Same-sex marriages, unlike civil partnerships, will give the same legal recognition as marriage for pensions, inheritance, child maintenance and immigration rights.
Photo courtesy of Dennis Bratland, with thanks.
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