MPs cheered in the House of Commons as it was announced that royal assent had been given to the new Bill, paving the way for the first same-sex weddings next spring.
The Queen, who is the Supreme Governor of the Church of England, gave her formal approval to the Bill – one of the most radical pieces of social legislation of her reign – this afternoon.
But it marks the end of the centuries-old understanding of marriage as being solely between a man and a woman in the UK.
The Roman Catholic Church described it as a “watershed” in English law and said that it marked a “profound social change”.
Ben Summerskill chief executive of Stonewall, said the move would “bring joy to tens of thousands of gay couples and their friends and families.”
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has told Israelis that "we are on the eve of an...
