The Taoiseach's declaration that he believes the State should provide some form of legal protection for partners in long-term cohabiting relationships, whether gay or hetereosexual, and that the current situation is inequitable, marks a milestone for Fianna Fáil. The party is prepared to lead public opinion on a sensitive, and important, issue of minority rights.
The statement by the Archbishop of Dublin, Dr Diarmuid Martin, is courageous. And the alignment of Catholic Church and the Government is likely to spur action swiftly to provide legal protection for long-time partnerships, an issue that clearly now enjoys cross-party support in the Oireachtas.
Both statements echo April's Law Reform Commission call for reform of taxation, inheritance, pensions and healthcare provisions for couples who have cohabited for three years or more, the thrust of Senator David Norris's Partnership Bill, and the positions of both the Equality Authority and the National Social and Economic Council.
Mr Ahern on RTÉ's The Week in Politics made clear that what he has in mind is not the equating of gay relationships with marriage, but to provide a half-way house in the form of recognition of civil unions. Speaking of the concerns the gay community had expressed to him, Mr Ahern eschewed the moralising that once was the staple of politics. "They say 'we want more equality, we want to be treated fairer'. I agree with that. I totally agree with that ... These people who are in relationships which are not illegal, they're not immoral, they're not improper, we should try and deal with some of the issues they have to surmount in their daily lives. And I think it's the fairest, caring, Christian way to deal with this."
Dr Martin, emphasising that his concern was primarily with other forms of caring, dependent relationships, was willing to encompass gay couples in such changes. In doing so, importantly and generously, he also implicitly acknowledged that the stability of such long-term relationships is a positive social good, the church's teaching on homosexuality notwithstanding.
It really is time to grasp the nettle. For far too many couples the denial of spousal rights, from tax allowances to pension entitlements, the refusal of institutions to recognise next-of-kin, or the discretion which officials may exercise over recognising foreign partners, all may compound painfully the difficulty of living a gay life in a society still deeply prejudiced.
Mr Ahern's admission could simplify the pleadings in the case which Ms Katherine Zappone and her partner, Dr Ann Louise Gilligan, are taking against the State to seek recognition of their Canadian marriage. It would clearly be absurd if it now sought to justify the specific tax discrimination which the couple complains of.
And it is right, that having recognised a wrong, the Government and the Oireachtas should show themselves capable of providing a legislative remedy before being required to do so by the courts. It would be a welcome sign of a growing maturity.