Bishops of England and Wales Call for Amendments to Marriage Bill

The House of Lords spent two days debating the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill. On Tuesday, the House rejected an amendment tabled by Lord Dear, a crossbench peer and former West Midlands chief constable, opposing the Bill - 390 votes to 148.

A spokesman for the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales said:

“The Church’s principled objection to the legal re-definition of marriage is consistently and clearly set out.

“Following the Bill’s second reading in the House of Lords, the Church’s aim is to ensure the Bill, as it goes to committee stage, is amended so that it effectively delivers the protections that the Government promised to provide for schools, religious organisations and individuals.”