The Church Of England is planning to use the House of Commons to further its agenda on LGBT rights.
In a blog post published Monday, the body said it would be asking Parliament to pass a “compulsory” bill that would require churches to have gender-neutral bathrooms, as well as making the public washrooms gender neutral and requiring the government to make the schools “gender neutral” by the year 2020.
The House of Lords passed a similar bill last year.
Church Of England to use Parliament to further LGBT agenda “If this bill is passed, it will make our country a better place for everyone,” the statement from the church’s governing body read.
“The Church of Scotland has already achieved this and we welcome that.”
The Church said that it had no plans to challenge the government in the courts.
The Church is not alone in its plans to take action in the UK.
The Episcopal Church in the United States has also announced it will ask Parliament to move to require schools to be gender neutral by the 2020 deadline.
Episcopal Church spokesman Scott Cook said in a statement that “the Episcopal Church believes the rights of our children and grandchildren are fundamental.”
The statement continued: “As we consider the consequences of passing a compulsory bill in Parliament, we look forward to engaging with the Government on its legislative priorities.”
As of Tuesday morning, the bill has already passed through the House, but it will need to pass through the Senate and then on to become law.
It was amended after receiving royal assent.
The final version of the bill passed in the House will likely be debated by the Senate on Wednesday.
As we await the Senate’s reaction, we are working with other faith leaders and advocates to ensure that this bill advances in both the House and the Senate,” said Cook.
Follow Chuck on Twitter