Senate recognises foreign 'pacs'

THE Senate has voted to allow British and other foreign civil partnerships the same recognition in France as a French pacs.

If this is given the final seal of approval in the National Assembly – as supporters believe will happen – this will make a big difference to the lives of many same sex partners in France, whose partnerships at present have no official recognition here.

While the pacs is recognised by the UK government this action is not currently reciprocated.

While French authorities do not recognise civil partnerships for tax or legal purposes, they will not allow couples registered in such partnerships to become pacsed without first dissolving their partnership.

Foreign civil partners currently have to pay heavy inheritance taxes on the death of a partner, from which pacs partners are exempt.

The new amendment is to a wide-ranging law simplifying legal procedures and has been placed at article 1a, according to Tewfik Bouzenoune, a close colleague of Green Party senator Alima Boumediene-Thiery who proposed it.

“The position of the article is symbolic – it would not be usual for the MPs to try to remove article 1, and we don’t think they will,” said Mr Bouzenoune.

The proposals was jointly supported by Green and Socialist senators and has now been agreed by the whole upper house.

Mr Bouzenoune said: “Normally the Nationally Assembly will not touch it at this stage.”

He said the amendment was first proposed by Green Party MP François de Rugy but was not adopted by the National Assembly in its first reading there.

Mr Bouzenoune said: “Since the amendment was originally refused by the MPs we have been lobbying – we have had articles written in the gay magazines, we have been in touch with leading gay rights barrister Caroline Mécary, we have talked to the Ministry of Justice who were favourable to the idea and government members who were against it are coming round to it.

“We also tried to propose our own separate law on the subject – which was not discussed, but which we think helped publicise the issue. We are very happy about the adoption by the Senate. It is a great victory.”

The Senate however refused to adopt another Green and Socialist amendment, which would have given pacs partners who are employees a statutory four-day holiday when they get pacsed, as applies to marriages.

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