A YouGov poll for Stonewall’s Living Together report last year also showed a clear majority of people in Britain support equal marriage, including three in five people of faith and over 80 per cent of people under the age of 50. Stonewall’s campaign website at www.stonewall.org.uk/marriage gives supporters a range of resources to help them campaign for equality.

Stonewall Chief Executive Ben Summerskill said "Sadly the minority of people who oppose equal marriage consistently use mistruths and smears to argue against it. Supporters of this modest measure mustn’t let a vocal minority block equality. People must write to, tweet, email or call their MPs to ask them for their support before the Bill’s Second Reading debate on 5 February. We need straight people with lesbian or gay friends or relatives to stand up for their rights too. Equality benefits everyone, which is why we need every supporter to press MPs to vote for it. Our message is simple. Speak now, or forever hold your peace."

John Wadham, General Counsel at the Equality and Human Rights Commission, added, “We welcome the government’s decision to introduce legislation to extend the right to marriage to same sex couples. We agree that couples who wish to marry should be permitted to marry in church if their church also wishes to marry them.”