The first laws giving gay people the right to 'marry' are to be unveiled this week in one of the most significant changes to Britain's social make-up since the passing of equal opportunities legislation in the 1960s. Attempting to show it still has a radical edge, the Government will say that all couples who sign up to a committed relationship should have the same rights, regardless of sexual orientation.
'It is about equality,' said a Whitehall source. 'It is not about special favours - they will have the right to commit to one another and the responsibilities that brings.'
Under the Civil Partnerships Bill to be published on Wednesday, same-sex couples will be able to sign a register held by the register office in a procedure similar to a marriage. Although the Govern ment will insist it is not officially a 'marriage' but rather a contract between two people, the fact that couples will have to announce their intentions beforehand in a similar way to the reading of the banns before a wedding reveals its true effect.
Couples will have rights to pensions similar to married couples, will not have to pay inheritance tax on property passed between them when one dies and will have access to hospital records similar to that allowed for a spouse.
The distress caused by the lack of rights for gay couples was highlighted by Trevor Bentham, who lived for 22 years with the actor Sir Nigel Hawthorne. Bentham had to pay a six-figure tax bill on Sir Nigel's half-share of their home, a 15th-century manor house in Hertfordshire, when the Yes Minister actor died.
The Government has decided not to demand that gay couples should go through an official ceremony as heterosexual couples do but will leave it to the discretion of local authorities. It is likely that most councils will allow ceremonies to take place.
Couples who then want to split will have to go through a dissolution in the courts, similar to a divorce. If there are children, maintenace payments will have to agreed.
The publication of the Bill reveals the remarkable change in the political status of gay people in Britain - and the main political parties are now scrambling for the gay vote. Tomorrow the Conservatives will hold their first ever 'gay summit' and will demand that the Government go even further. The party that introduced Section 28, banning the promotion of homosexuality by local authorities, will now argue that it is the place for the gay vote.
Whitehall sources close to the drafting of the Bill said it may not go far enough for some members of the gay lobby. It appears that pension rights for surviving partners will not be as generous as for married couples. Pension rights will not be backdated as they are for married couples, meaning gay couples will get a smaller amount. Some officials blamed the Treasury for blocking it because it was too expensive.
Ben Summerskill, director of the leading gay campaigning group, Stonewall, said: 'Most people's objective for civil partnership is full equality. It is not something we can introduce gradually.'
The Tories hope that disappointment on pensions may give them an opportunity to attack the Bill. 'It may well be that we turn out to be ahead of the Government here,' said Alan Duncan, shadow constitutional affairs Minister and the only openly gay Tory MP. 'We are watching very closely to see if the inheritance tax provisions are fair and match those of a married couple.
Duncan will speak out on civil partnerships at tomorrow's Tory summit on gay issues. It will tackle problems from getting health insurance to homophobic bullying in schools. Brian Paddick, the gay Metropolitan Police commander, will discuss homophobic hate crime alongside Steve Norris, Tory candidate for London Mayor and an outspoken advocate of gay-friendly policies.
Summerskill said: 'At the moment it is a question of (the Tories) dipping their toes in the water, and I'm not sure that gay electors will be skinny-dipping with Michael Howard just yet.'
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