ABSTRACT
As recently as 1970, sexual activity between men was completely illegal in Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, and was stigmatized as immoral and highly undesirable by an unequal, higher age of consent in England and Wales, and in all but one of the twenty-three other countries that are now member states of the European Union. Maintaining and improving human rights protection around the world requires constant vigilance and infinite patience. The battle for 'sex rights' for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) individuals in the forty-six Council of Europe countries has largely been won, at least in the realm of legal principles as opposed to the practical enforcement of these principles, and putting aside sexual freedom issues that are shared by heterosexual and LGBT individuals. The partnership rights claims of different-sex partners who are able to marry, but have chosen not to do so, have received increasing attention from legislatures since the 1970s.
