Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill: Lords amendments

The Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill received its First Reading in the House of Lords on 21 May 2013 (HL Bill 29), followed by Second Reading on 3 and 4 June 2013. Committee stage took place over three days on 17, 19 and 24 June 2013 (amended Bill available as HL Bill 34). Report stage took place on two days, 8 and 10 July 2013 (amended Bill available as HL Bill 39). Third Reading took place on 15 July 2013. The consolidated Lords amendments to the Bill are available as Bill 94 of 2013-14. The Bill is due to return to the Commons on 16 July 2013 for consideration of the Lords amendments.

Commentary on the Bill as first introduced is provided in Library Research Paper 13/08. Debate arising in the Public Bill Committee in the Commons is set out in Library Research Paper 13/22. The House of Lords Library Note on the Bill (LLN 2013/011) summarises the Report stage and Third Reading debate in the House of Commons.

The purpose of this note is to draw attention to the principal amendments that were made in the Lords. It does not cover all minor or technical amendments. All the agreed amendments were Government amendments, many of which were moved in response to amendments proposed but not agreed at earlier stages, and commitments made by the Government to consider matters further. Peers debated many other amendments, on some of which they voted, but this note does not cover amendments that were not agreed.

The House of Lords agreed amendments at Committee stage, at Report stage and at Third Reading.

At Report stage, Baroness Stowell of Beeston, Lords Spokesperson for Women and Equalities, said that the Government had made several amendments to the Bill and accepted concessions where “it was possible to clarify and give people the greater confidence that they wanted that the protections in the Bill are robust”. However, she said that changes were made only “where we were confident that by clarifying we did not introduce something else that would then call into question what we are trying to achieve”.