A couple from north London today vowed to be among the first in the UK to complete a mixed-sex civil partnership after rules paving the way for the first ceremonies to be held on New Year’s Eve cleared their final hurdle.
Legislation allowing opposite-sex couples to register their relationship as a legal civil partnership were approved by Parliament this year but still needed further parliamentary orders to be able to come into practical effect.
Those orders, which had already cleared the Commons, were approved in the House of Lords last night — meaning that the first couples will be able to enter mixed-sex civil partnerships on December 31.
Among those who plan to do so are Sophie Talbot, 55, and Simon Castle, 53, of King’s Cross, who intend to tie the knot on December 31 at Camden Town Hall.
Ms Talbot, a university library assistant, said: “It has been a long time coming.”
Martin Loat, chair of campaign group Equal Civil Partnerships, said he was relieved it had come to
fruition, adding: “It has been a long journey to get to this point.”
