Gay couple Barrie, Tony Drewitt-Barlow files lawsuit in UK against church’s right to opt-out of gay wedding
The UK’s first gay surrogate parents have launched a legal challenge to the Church of England’s ban on same-sex marriage, objecting the church’s ability to opt-out of performing the service.
Millionaire Barrie Drewitt-Barlow, 44, who runs the Maldon-based British Surrogacy Center with partner Tony, hoped to get married in his local church, St John the Baptist, in Danbury.
The Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill was given Royal Assent last month after winning cross-party support, but under the terms of the Act, religious organizations have to opt in to offer weddings.
The Church of England and the Church of Wales are not offering weddings.
photo chtfj21
Drewitt-Barlow, who has been in a civil partnership since 2006, told the Chelmsford Weekly News that “We’ve launched a challenge to the Government’s decision to allow some religious groups to opt out of marrying same-sex couples…We feel we have the right as parishioners in our village to utilise the church we attend to get married.”
The gay couple defended their local church body, saying ““It is no reflection on our local church, who have been nothing but supportive towards us…We understand their hands are tied by a higher group of people within the church.”
Human rights lawyer Aidan O’Neill says protection for the Anglican Church is “eminently challengeable” in court.
A copy of O’Neill’s legal advice was sent to the prime minister in January, as Cameron proceeded with the legislation.
[…] Gay couple Barrie, Tony Drewitt-Barlow files lawsuit in UK against church’s right to opt-out of ga… – Millionaire Barrie Drewitt-Barlow, 44, who runs the Maldon-based British Surrogacy Center with partner Tony, hoped to get married in his local church, St John the Baptist, in Danbury. The Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill was given Royal Assent last month … […]
The headline says the couple filed a lawsuit, but no such suit nor other legal action of any kind is mentioned in the article.
Had such a suit been filed, every major news outlet would have related its details — parties named in the formal papers, the names of the plaintiffs’ counsel and the court where the papers were filed, etc.
(And no, “launching a legal challenge” is not actually a type of legal action, but rather a euphemism for “running that mouth at gullible amateur journalists.”)
As long as CoE is the official church of England, an arm of the State, then they are at the behest of secular rights to marry.