A group of MPs from all parties have written a letter to the Daily Telegraph claiming that "none of the three main parties stood on a platform to redefine marriage." and that therefore "the Government has no mandate to redefine the meaning of marriage".
We believe that they are mistaken, and that there were committments to look at same-sex marriage in the documents all Conservative MPs campaigned on during the 2010 General Election.
The Contract for Equalities set out a Conservative vision of equality for modern Britain. Amongst the committments was a promise that: "[w]e will also consider the case for changing the law to allow civil partnerships to be called and classified as marriage”
Launching the document, then Shadow Minister for Women and EQualities Theresa May MP said:
"the contract "underscores some of the most important battles in politics", on gender equality, racial equality, ending age discrimination, LGBT issues and helping disabled people.
In this contract, as with the others, the Conservatives are saying that if we fail to make progress in these areas and do not deliver on our side of the bargain, then vote us out in five years time.
"This contract for equalities will be central to what we plan to do in government", May said. "After 13 years of Labour’s big government, inequality is at its highest level since the Second World War".
Colm Howard-Lloyd
National Policy Officer