A report issued today by the Equality Authority has recommended that same sex couples be given equal rights to adopt and foster children.
The Implementing Equality for Lesbians, Gays and Bisexualsreport says that: "Rights in relation to parenting, fostering and adoption should operate on an equal basis for same-sex couples, individuals, married and non-married heterosexual couples and should be based on the core principle of attaching rights to children and responsibilities to parents and carers".
The report also recommends that same-sex couples be given the same taxation and inheritance rights as married couples.
"A legally valid marriage has tax advantages, but these are not available to a same-sex relationship which has no legal standing in the tax system," the report says.
It recommends that: "The Department of Finance should make the necessary recommendations for change to taxation systems in line with according equal rights to same-sex partners, unmarried heterosexual couples and married couples".
On the issue of inheritance, the report recommends that the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform "should ensure that same-sex couples are treated in an equal manner by extending the right to nominate a partner with legal rights to same-sex couples, comparable with those recognised for a spouse.
"The outcome of which would recognise the right of same-sex couples to:
- nominate a partner or successor;
- designate a next-of-kin for medical issues;
- nominate a beneficiary of pensions and inheritance; and
- nominate a partner as a co-parent or guardian of a child.
Speaking at today's launch, Dr Ailbhe Smyth of the Women's Education Research and Resource Centre at UCD, described the report as "a landmark" and "a challenge to society as a whole".
"This report says that lesbians, gays and bisexuals matter," she said. "This report sets out an agenda for positive change for lesbians, gays and bisexuals in Irish society."
The report has also found that members of the gay, lesbian and bisexual communities experience exclusion and discrimination in many areas such as education, employment and health.
In the workplace, it finds that gay couples are discriminated against in relation to promotions and working conditions, solely because of their sexual orientation.
The report also finds that, like their European counterparts, they experience a higher rate of violence than the rest of the population.
