Greens push for more registers

Local council relationship registers would become available nationwide if the Greens manage to obtain enough votes at the 13 September elections.

Greens GLBT spokesperson, Wagga Wagga City Council’s Ray Goodlass, has pledged that the Greens will use their collective power across councils to push for the adoption of relationship registers nationwide.

There are currently only two councils that offer the service, Melbourne and Sydney City councils. They not only allow their constituents to have their relationships registered but also allow couples to have a ceremony with friends and family.

Both Melbourne and Sydney City Councils have relationship registers so there is no reason why all councils can’t have them, Goodlass said.

The Greens are keen to undermine the homophobic legacy of the Commonwealth Marriage Act and the indifference of the NSW Government when it comes to same-sex relationships. The Greens strongly support full recognition of same-sex de facto relationships, civil unions and marriage and see local government relationship registers as a way to campaign for equality.

While these relationship registers will not remove inequality overnight, they do ensure that the Rudd Government is kept on its toes when it comes to delivering equality for same-sex couples.