A Labour councillor has delivered an emotional statement at Moray Council over the decision this week to allow same-sex marriage in Scotland.
Fochabers/Lhanbryde councillor Sean Morton delivered a statement at the start of Wednesday’s meeting of the Full Council calling on the local authority to show its support for the decision taken at Holyrood earlier this week that made Scotland the 17th world nation to make same-sex marriage legal.
Councillor Morton said he was grateful for a decision that would “change the lives of people who are in same-sex relationships”. The openly gay Councillor added that he could only have dreamed that one day he would live in a society that allowed loving couples to marry regardless of their sex.
He also expressed his thanks to Richard Lochhead for supporting the bill having previously accused the Moray MSP of “sitting on the fence” over the issue.
However, fellow ward member Councillor Douglas Ross voiced a different view, saying: “While it is right and proper that we recognise the momentous achievement, that we also recognise that there were hundreds of thousands of people in Moray and Scotland who opposed this.”
Following the Holyrood decision local MSP Richard Lochhead said: “It was a privilege to be in the Scottish Parliament this week to cast my vote in favour of Equal Marriage in what was a momentous and historic day for so many people in Scotland.
“This has been a huge step forward for equality and fairness.
“This issue generated a lot of strong feeling on both sides, however, I am confident that the legislation as passed has in place the necessary safeguards to protect religious freedoms whilst still taking a fundamental step forward in building a more equal society.”