Gay marriage Bill set for Scottish Parliament Legislation to allow same-sex couples to marry is expected to be introduced at Holyrood today. The Scottish Government has previously pledged to introduce a Bill on gay marriage before the Scottish Parliament finishes for its summer recess. As today is the final day of parliamentary business before the break, ministers must now introduce the proposed new law to fulfil that commitment. The Government has already consulted on proposals to legalise gay marriage, with religious and belief bodies required to opt in to perform same-sex marriages. These proposals also include provisions to protect freedom of speech and amend guidelines for teaching around the issue in schools. Policy co-ordinator Tom French said: "Thirty-three years ago Scotland finally decriminalised homosexuality, today the vast majority of Scots agree that it's time LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) people were granted full equality under the law. By passing equal marriage legislation, our MSPs will not only be giving same-sex couples an equal right to celebrate their love through marriage, they will also be sending out a message to the world about the kind of fair and progressive country Scotland wants to be. Openly gay SNP MSP Marco Biagi described marriage as a "recognition of love and commitment between two people," and said: "Whatever their gender, they deserve equality before the law." The Edinburgh Central politician, who is the deputy convener of Holyrood's Equal Opportunities Committee, said: "It's now down to us as MSPs to ensure the Bill successfully does what it says on the tin. The Bill needs to maintain the freedom of religion for faiths who disagree, while also granting religious freedom for the first time to those faiths - like the Quakers - who have long wanted to perform same-sex ceremonies and have been forbidden from doing so. Health Secretary Alex Neil said: "The Scottish Government will be introducing a Bill on same-sex marriage before the end of the 2012/13 parliamentary term. Liberties We believe that everyone in this society should have equal rights - that is why same-sex couples should be allowed to marry. We also recognise that some religious bodies and individual celebrants will not wish to take part and we have made clear that we will protect their position. The campaign group Scotland for Marriage has strongly opposed plans to allow same-sex couples to marry, and has now vowed to step up its efforts. A spokesman said: "The Scottish Government pledged to protect free speech and other civil liberties but they have not fulfilled their promises." He added: "Today marks the beginning of the next phase of our concerted opposition. Scotland for Marriage now has more supporters - almost 50,000 - than the combined memberships of the mainstream political parties in Scotland added together. In coming months we will tell voters the facts, including what redefining marriage means for people's jobs, lives and families. Teachers, parents, school kids, foster carers, NHS chaplains and others in everyday life must not be penalised for backing traditional marriage. We have warned for more than a year that safeguards and law changes are required to do this - but our views have been ignored so far.