Three leading Fianna Fáil Senators have resigned the Government Whip in order to vote in favour of their amendments to Civil Partnership Bill. Among their amendments is a conscience clause.

The three senators are John Hanafin (pictured), Jim Walsh and Labhrás Ó Murchu. In a letter sent today to the Government Whip in the Seanad, Senator Diarmuid Wilson, they said regretted that they “conscientiously find this [resigning the whip] to be the only appropriate avenue open to us”.

They said their resignation was with effect from the commencement of the Order of Business today. They said they would otherwise continue to support the Government and expressed their loyalty to Taoiseach Brian Cowen.

The letter reads as follows: “We write to advise you that we feel it incumbent upon us to relinquish the Whip with effect from the commencement of the Order of Business today, as we have tabled amendments to the Civil Partnership Bill.

It is a matter of regret that we conscientiously find this to be the only appropriate avenue open to us, and, we would like to offer our apologies to both the Taoiseach and the Minister for Justice for any difficulties that this might present.

Recognising the genuine efforts being made by the Taoiseach and his Cabinet to overcome the current recession, and, for any avoidance of doubt we would like to say that it is clearly our intention to support the continuing efforts of the Government to restore a functional banking system, improve the economy, and fulfil the Programme for Government.”

In a debate on the Bill last month, Senator O’Murchu said that people who hold traditional values ought not to be subject to “a penal code” of imprisonment or loss of employment for refusing to cooperate with same-sex civil unions.

He said that the Government “should tread warily on the individual conscience”.

Senator O’Murchu said that having spoken in the past on behalf of prisoners of conscience, it was “an uncomfortable prospect for me that at some future date, as a result of legislation in which I have acquiesced, I may have to speak in this House on behalf of Irish prisoners of conscience”.

The Government’s Civil Partnership Bill, he added “provides that a person can lose his or her job or be imprisoned, and that churches and other bodies can have their property commandeered”.

Speaking in the same debate, Senator Walsh said those who opposed the liberal agenda had “a right to a free vote on such issues as have people outside the right to exercise freedom of conscience.”

He added: “If we move against that, as Senator Ó Murchú said, we will move to a totalitarian society which certainly many of us, particularly liberals, would argue against if it were impinging upon their beliefs.”

Senator John Hanafin called for a debate on the issue of a conscience clause. He said that he had a difficulty with the Bill, and repeated his call for a referendum on the legislation proposed by the Government.