Today we release the results of our same-sex partnership survey, which surveyed almost 200 people in a same-sex relationship in Ireland. Our survey captured feedback from the Irish LGBT community regarding their thoughts on the new Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010.
Keith Malone, co-founder and CEO of mrs2be.ie commented: “it is worth noting that over one quarter of the Irish LGBT community believe that the new civil partnership Act is completely inadequate and leaves many important issues un-addressed. Almost 72% acknowledge that while the new Act isn’t perfect, it is a step in the right direction.”
Other data captured included feedback from the couples regarding their experiences to date of planning their civil partnership ceremony and celebrations.
Key findings of the mrs2be same-sex partnership survey are:
- Only 7% of those surveyed believe that marriage and civil partnership are equal i.e. that marriage and civil partnership confer the same benefits regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. 89% believed that marriage and civil partnership are NOT equal while 4% were unsure.
- Almost 72% of the Irish LGBT community believe that the new Act is not perfect but it is a step in the right direction. 26.7% believe that the new Act is completely inadequate and leaves many issues un-addressed
- 67 % of respondents said that their vote in the recent general election was influenced by a political party’s policy on same-sex marriage. 25.2% said their vote was not influenced by political party policy and 7.8% mentioned that they didn’t vote.
- When asked will Ireland legislate for full marriage equality within the lifetime of our current Government, 55% of respondents said ‘no’, and 42% said ‘yes’.
- 36.6% of respondents are planning on having a civil partnership ceremony.
- For sourcing information regarding how to actually plan for a civil partnership, Google and other search engines are the primary source followed by personal recommendations and word of mouth.
- On average, 30.6% of respondents find it difficult to source LGBT friendly suppliers, inspirations from previous civil partnerships and a positive, non-judgmental space to discuss the planning process with others. However, an average of 53.1% of responses described this process as either ‘okay’ or ‘easy’.
- 17.8% responded that they encountered some level of discrimination from certain wedding suppliers when planning their civil partnership.
- 3.2% responded that suppliers refused to deal with them once they mentioned that they were planning a same-sex ceremony. 34.9% of suppliers had a neutral reaction and 39.7% reported that suppliers were excited about being involved and doing business.
Key information regarding the respondents to the survey:
- 215 responses in total
- 67% of respondents are aged between 26 and 40
- Sexual orientation of the respondents are broken down as follows: 52.1% gay, 34.4% lesbian, 9.8% bi-sexual, 3.7% others and prefer not to respond
- 12.6% respondents currently have children
- 21.3% of respondents indicated that one partner in their relationship is not an Irish citizen and 1.6% said that neither partner is an Irish citizen. The remaining 77% answered that both individuals are Irish citizens.
- When asked what their main reason for wanting civil partnership, almost 62% indicated that it was to celebrate the love and commitment that they share. 27% responded that it to have a formal recognition of their relationship for legal / financial benefits.
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