On first sight this looks like a lovely commemorative coin – it’s even roughly similar to that of the UK 50 pence piece – but on closer inspection there are so may problems it is hardly believable. It’s supposed to celebrate

5 years [since] the first same sex marriages in March of 2014. To celebrate this wonderful milestone, TheCoinSupplier has partnered with the LGBT Foundation to release this collectable. 

So, here are the ones I notice.

Ireland is not in the UK

First off, Ireland has been independent of the UK for nearly one hundred years. There was a pretty nasty war of independence to bring this about. Yes, Ireland voted for equal marriage but it is not a UK law.

What is UK law anyway?

Strange as it may seem, the “United Kingdom” is not a very united country. There are laws applicable to England and Wales, to Scotland, and to Northern Ireland. Sometimes there are laws applicable to the whole of the UK. But not in this case.

Same sex couples Act March 2014?

Checking on legislation.gov.uk and there is no such Act. There is the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013 which is for England and Wales. There is the Marriage and Civil Partnership (Scotland) Act 2014. On the Irish Statute Book, there is the Marriage Act 2015 which is for Ireland. And yes, there is one jurisdiction missing – that’s right, Northern Ireland is left out.

All too often, politicians in the UK claim that they have brought equal marriage to the UK. They have, but only partially. Many LGBT people in Northern Ireland do not have the option of getting married for there their relationships are only worth a civil partnership.

We know (from having lived outside Northern Ireland) that our civil partnership was not always recognized which caused trouble for us in the past. Fortunately, we are now married following a ceremony in July 2016 in Dublin. Our marriage is recognized throughout these islands, except for in Northern Ireland. When we cross the border, we are downgraded to being in a civil partnership. Seriously!

The political parties in the North seem incapable of forming an executive to get the Northern Ireland Assembly working again. Surely, it is time for the UK Parliament to take back control, and to legislate on many issues to bring the North into line with the rest of the UK – never mind with the rest of Ireland. I am pleased to see that there are two Bills in the Parliament at Westminster currently trying to achieve just that. There is the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) (Northern Ireland) Bill [HL] 2017-19 in the House of Lords, as well as the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) (Northern Ireland) (No. 2) Bill 2017-19 in the House of Commons. Yes, there are two rival bills… well done Westminster!

If after all this, you want to get the coin you can do so at TheCoinSupplier.

Support a UK charity – oh wait…

For each collectable sold, we will donate 20% to the LGBT Foundation, a UK charity devoted to helping the LGBT community.

LGBT 2019 Collectable, https://thecoinsupplier.com/products/lgbt, [accessed 2019-03-31 07:25}

But there are even problems with that statement: the LGBT Foundation is a charity in the UK, but it is not a UK charity – it is an English charity. You can see that it only operates in England (via the Charity Commission).

Perhaps, enough people will point out these errors and an updated “coin” could be created to celebrate marriage equality in general when it comes to all of the jurisdictions in these islands.