Ruling parties in the Lithuanian parliament have agreed to remove the civil union bill, aimed at legally recognising same-sex relations, from Tuesday’s agenda.
“We have agreed to remove the bill from tomorrow’s agenda, that issue will be discussed at some other time when we agree,” Vytautas Mitalas, the elder of the Freedom Party political group, told reporters on Monday after he and other elders of ruling party groups met with Speaker Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen.
He did not elaborate on the reasons for removing the piece of legislation and could not say when the bill would be put back on the agenda.
“That is what we agreed,” Mitalas said.
The ruling block had earlier agreed to discuss the bill on Tuesday and it was put on the parliament agenda.
The parliamentary Committee on Legal Affairs had approved the bill in September, but it has not been brought for plenary discussion so far.
While the liberal members of the ruling coalition have supported legislation on same-sex partnership, they have so far failed to secure the votes of conservatives.
The parliament had also been scheduled to discuss an alternative bill drafted by opponents of same-sex partnerships, who suggested introducing a loose concept of “close relationship” in the Civil Code. However, the Committee on Legal Affairs has proposed to reject this bill.
Members of the ruling block say that the civil union bill has been drafted as a compromise after the earlier and more ambitious civil partnership bill was rejected by the parliament in 2021.
Lithuania’s laws do not recognise civil partnership between either of same-sex or opposite-sex couples. Previous legislative attempts in the parliament have failed.
At the same time, Lithuania’s constitution maintains that marriage is only between a man and a woman.
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