Question reference: S5W-34680
- Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
- Date lodged: 19 January 2021
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Current status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 25 January 2021
Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-32931 by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 3 November 2020, whether it will provide an update on progress with bringing the Civil Partnership (Scotland) Act 2020 fully into force.
Answer
Since the Civil Partnership (Scotland) Bill passed its final Stage in the Scottish Parliament on 23 June last year, we have been progressing the various tasks required to make mixed sex civil partnership available in Scotland, including:
- A package of secondary legislation in the Scottish Parliament
- Training and guidance for registrars
- Public-facing guidance
- Changes to IT systems
The effect of these regulations is that mixed sex civil partnerships that have been formed outside Scotland will be recognised in Scotland, initially in accordance with the interim scheme of recognition provided for in the Act, from 1 February 2021, and that couples will be able to submit notices of intention to enter a mixed sex civil partnership in Scotland from 1 June 2021.
However, this is subject to Parliament's approval of the matters covered in the secondary legislation. In addition, it is critical that we give priority to work to tackle COVID-19. This could mean that resources within the Scottish Government, National Records of Scotland (which is responsible for registering life events including civil partnership) and local authority registration departments may have to be diverted at short notice to work relating to the pandemic.
The Scottish Government is aware that some couples are waiting for mixed sex civil partnership registration to begin in Scotland. We are committed to achieving that as soon as possible.