Queen Elizabeth II gave her royal
approval to Scotland's gay marriage bill on Thursday.
Gay and lesbian couples in Scotland
will be able to marry by the end of the year, Gay
Star News reported.
“I am delighted that the Same Sex
Marriage Bill has now received Royal Assent,” Alex Neil, cabinet
secretary for health and wellbeing, is quoted as saying. “We
continue to work in close co-operation with Westminster on
implementation of the Act so that the first same sex marriage can
take place in Scotland as soon as is possible.”
Despite opposition from religious and
conservative groups, Scottish lawmakers approved the bill with a 105
to 18 vote.
(Related: Scotland
approves gay marriage bill.)
Gay and lesbian couples can legally
marry in South Africa, Belgium, Denmark, France, Iceland, the
Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil,
Spain, Canada and New Zealand. A law in Britain and Wales takes
effect on March 29. In Mexico and the United States, protections for
gay couples can vary widely depending on the state.
(Related: Britain
begins recognizing marriages of gay couples performed overseas.)