Majority of Scottish MPs Expected To Back Gay Marriage

A report in the newspaper Scotland on Sunday indicates that the majority of Scottish MPs are likely to vote for marriage equality.

The SNP led administration in Scotland has held its own consultation on same-sex marriage separately from the Westminster government. Scotland’s First Minister Alex Salmond has previously indicated the SNP government was “inclined” to introduce same-sex marriage in the country regardless of what the Tory-Lib Dem coalition does south of the border. The Scotland on Sunday newspaper reports that a survey of the 129 MSPs by the Equality Network reveal that over 69 would vote in favour of gay marriage.

The Catholic Church is Scotland has been vehemently opposed to same-sex marriage and has urged its congregations to sign petitions opposing it. Senior members of the Catholic Church in Scotland have even warned the SNP that introducing gay marriage could not only cost them votes but also any referendum on independence. Cardinal Keith O’Brien described gay marriage as a “grotesque subversion of universally accepted human right” and even linked the legalisation of same-sex marriage with the legalisation of slavery!

Opinion polls have suggested the majority of people in Scotland back gay marriage. Scotland On Sunday suggests the Equality Network may seek to introduce a Private Members Bill to Holryood if it believes Mr Salmond has decided to press ahead with marriage equality. At the current time it appears as though same-sex marriage has support across the political spectrum in Scotland.