Gays ‘scared’ to wed

COMMITMENT . . . Jason Bromley and Paul Burgess at their civil partnership

SAME-SEX couples are least likely to form a civil partnership in Oldham than anywhere else in Northern England.

Only five ceremonies took place in the borough in the whole of 2010 — with only one being a male civil partnership.

One Fitton Hill man, who tied the knot with his partner in 2009 at Chadderton Town Hall believes the extremely low figures are down to local gay people being “scared”.

Paul Burgess (42), who founded the Pink Triangle Theatre Company, which tackles issues surrounding gay people, revealed many of his gay friends from Oldham are refraining from coming out publicly.

He said: “If myself and Jason (Bromley) did not run two non-profit organisations in Oldham, we would not be living here.

“It’s not that I don’t love my home town, I do. I was born here.

“But they are the only things keeping us here.”

Ever since long-term partners Judith Tomlinson and Mary Harrison formed the first Oldham civil partnership in 2005 numbers have dwindled. According to research by the Office of National Statistics, Oldham civil partnerships have plummeted by 66 per cent in the past two years — putting Oldham at the bottom of the pile.

Knowsley, in Merseyside, was the only other authority in the north of England to have only one male civil partnership in 2010.

Oldham’s registration services manager, Marina Brown, said: “After the initial surge the numbers declined and I believe this was seen nationally.

“As far as I am aware, Oldham does not have a large gay community and being on the outskirts of Manchester, we may lose couples in this respect.

“Oldham Registration Service, like all other services provided by Oldham Council, takes every opportunity to ensure that its services are accessible to all areas of the community and has taken positive steps to promote civil partnerships and equal opportunities as a whole.”