Same-sex marriage: Paisley son says businesses must be able to opt out

Rev Kyle Paisley, son of former first minister Ian Paisley, made the remarks after the News Letter reported that a planned so-called conscience clause will cover religious officiants, but not wedding-related businesses.

READ: Same-sex marriage: New law has no opt out for Northern Irish florists, photographers and hotelsThe Northern Ireland Office – which is currently drawing up regulations around gay marriage – specifically gave the examples of florists, hotels, and photographers.

The news has highlighted the limitations of the protection which the Ashers gay cake case offers.

In short, the Christian Institute (which supported Ashers in its court cases) says that whilst the Supreme Court effectively ruled in 2018 that no-one can compel a business to print a slogan with which they disagree, the same business would not be able to refuse to provide a generic wedding cake for people who are celebrating a gay marriage.

It is essentially the difference between refusing a message, and refusing a customer.

Rev Paisley, who ministers in Lowestoft’s Free Presbyterian church, south-east England, said there should be an “absolute opt-out” for all.

He said something like a conscience bill, enshrining this absolute opt-out into law (akin to one proposed by DUP MLA Paul Givan in 2014) could be “a good thing”.

“There should be an opt-out for those who don’t want to do it, businesses as well as churches I think. I don’t think anybody should be compelled against their will,” he said.

“Once you start down that road – chipping away freedoms here, there and everywhere – you don’t know where you are, you don’t feel a free society anymore.

“I can’t ask for an opt-out for myself as a minister, and not expect other people to have the opportunity for an opt-out. I think it’d be selfish for me to say ‘I am only concerned what happens to churches, it does not matter to me one way or the other what happens to businesses’.

“I think they should have the same liberties I would want for myself.”

He believes not even ministers ultimately will be safe, adding: “I just wonder how long governments will tolerate that kind of thing. My own view of it is eventually they’ll be compelled, forced to do gay marriages. I wouldn’t put it past any government to compel them to do it.”

He said he can imagine if a church had charitable status or received government funds, the government “could have it”.

The Northern Ireland (Executive Formation etc) Act 2019 compelled the Westminster government to implement gay marriage on January 13 – and it gave the Northern Ireland secretary of state the power to “make any provision that the secretary of state considers appropriate in order to protect the ability to act in accordance with religious or other belief or opinion”.

Its consultation on these planned regulations is due to end this Sunday.

The Northern Ireland Office said: “Service providers are ... required to comply with the relevant equality laws in Northern Ireland. Registrars and service providers are treated in the same way in Northern Ireland as in the rest of the UK. We will make further regulations once we have considered all of the responses to the consultations.”

Open consultation – A consultation on same-sex religious marriage and conversion entitlements in Northern Ireland