Sat 25 Sep 2010 In: New Zealand Daily News View at Wayback View at NDHA
Ex-MP Brian Donnelly, the only NZ First MP to vote in favour of New Zealand's Civil Union Bill, died this afternoon, Party leader Winston Peters has told Parliament. Died: Brian Donnelly Donnelly was known as a social liberal MP in the usually right-wing leaning Party. He made reference to his gay brother during debate about Civil Unions in 2004, when he appealed to opponents of same-sex marriage to be tolerant and realise "their candles won't burn less brightly if they light someone else's". "How will my own marriage be diminished by the passage of this legislation? The answer, and I am convinced it is the correct answer, is it will not make one iota of difference," he told the House. For some weeks Donnelly towed the NZ First Party line by suggesting a national referendum on whether LGBT New Zealanders should have the right to legal relationship recognition, but he eventually voted in favour of the legislation at each stage, while fellow NZ First MP Ron Mark ultimately voted no in the final reading. The long-serving MP left Parliament earlier this year to become NZ High Commissioner to the Cook Islands, but had to resign last month due to ill health.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News Staff
First published: Saturday, 25th September 2010 - 5:23pm