At the end of the second year of Civil Unions, Registrar-General Brian Clarke says there have been almost 900 civil unions performed in New Zealand. Civil Unions were first introduced here on 26th April 2005. There were 302 Unions that year, and last year there were 427. New Zealand has 680 licensed Civil Union celebrants. Over 150 Civil Unions have been performed so far this year. Among them was Rainbow Labour MP and Conservation Minister Chris Carter's union with his long-term partner Peter Kaiser. Prime Minister Helen Clark attended their ceremony in February. Australians Lawrence Jordan and Harvey Streager are one of several same-sex couples who have flown across the Tasman to ‘tie the knot'. Their civil union in January was not recognised under Australian federal law but would be recognised by countries with similar laws to New Zealand's, such as Britain. Rainbow Labour MP Tim Barnett, who was a driving force behind the introduction of Civil Unions, announced earlier this year his intention to Civil Unionise with his long-term partner this November. GayNZ.com's list of licensed Civil Union celebrants is on the link below. Ref: Department of Internal Affairs, GayNZ.com (m) Related links: www.gaynz.com/civil_unions/
Credit: GayNZ.com News Staff
First published: Thursday, 26th April 2007 - 12:00pm