Gay Marriage Bill clears the Commons to the cheers of MPS

Two ships grounded off coast of Scotland

APPLAUSE broke out after the Coalition G o v e r n me n t ’ s controversial plans to legalise gay marriage cleared the House of Commons despite efforts by Tory backbenchers to derail the legislation.

MPs voted by 366 to 161, a majority of 205, to give the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill a third reading.

The legislation will go to the House of Lords after the half-term recess, where it is expected to attract fierce opposition from peers. The result is a marginal improvement for Mr Cameron on the vote at second reading when 175 MPs opposed the plans. It also comes as a relief for Downing Street following a serious attempt by Tory former minister Tim Loughton to derail the Bill.

Mr Loughton had tabled an amendment extending civil partnerships to straight couples – a move which ministers warned could have cost the Treasury an extra £4 billion in pension liabilities and scupper the chances of the Bill becoming law.

But Labour decided against supporting Mr Loughton and offered the Government an 11thhour deal to immediately review the possibility of extending civil partnerships to straight couples.

Culture Secretary Maria Miller accepted their amendment and Mr Loughton’s amendment in the end was easily defeated.

Labour’s Shadow Minister for Women and Equalities, Yvette Cooper, said: “I have heard Conservative members talk about the anger in their constituencies.

“I hope they will now be able to stop talking about the anger and start talking about the joy.”

Sir Tony Baldry – the senior Tory MP who represents the Church of England in the Commons – said he already had enough problems trying to persuade voters in his rural Oxfordshire constituency of Banbury about the need to legalise gay marriage. He said: “I have had enough problems in my constituency with same-sex marriage.”

In a heated debate yesterday, a number of MPs, many of them Conservative backbenchers, stood up to denounce the Government’s plans. Former Defence Minister Sir Gerald Howarth said he believed there was an “aggressive homosexual community” who saw gay marriage as a “stepping stone to something even further”.

Colin Macfarlane, director of Stonewall Scotland ,said: “We call on the Scottish Government to now set a timetable for the introduction of its own Bill so MSPs can get on with saying I do to equal marriage in Scotland.”

Dominique Venner, 78-year-old French far-right activist committed suicide at the altar of Notre Dame cathedral in Paris yesterday, three days after a law legalising same-sex marriage came into effect. A PASSENGER ship has escaped undamaged after it ran aground on the west coast of Scotland.

Dive teams were yesterday inspecting the vessel, the Serenissima, which became lodged on sand and gravel in Oban Bay last night.

None of the 61 passengers or 51 crew members were injured during the incident.

The 300ft vessel was kept anchored during an inspection which found no damage. There was also no reported pollution.

A classification surveyor was carrying out some final checks last night before giving the ship the go-ahead to continue sailing.

The vessel ran aground at a spot known as the Corran Ledge as it made its way from Ireland to the port of Oban.

Strong winds hampered initial attempts by the crew and the Oban RNLI lifeboat team to rescue it, but it was eventually re-floated at about 1.10am.

Another ship, the Vos Protector, also ran aground in Fraserburgh harbour in the north-east of Scotland.

Aberdeen Coastguard and a Fraserburgh lifeboat managed to tow the boat back to the harbour.

A coastguard spokesman said: “No-one was injured, but it shows how even small changes in the tide can cause problems.”