ROME - Chamber of Deputies Speaker Laura Boldrini has spoken out in favour of Italy granting civil-union status to same-sex couples, prompting criticism from the centre right who said she had overstepped the impartiality of her office.

  Her statement comes after a weekend full of demonstrations across Italy in support of gay rights in anticipation of the Senate’s debate on the matter this week. 

  At this point, it is not known whether Prime Minister Matteo Renzi’s government has enough support to pass the motion in the upper chamber, where it will be voted on in a secret ballot.

  Italy is currently the only country in Western Europe that does not recognise civil unions or gay marriage.

  “We hope it will pass, but we don’t know,” said Fabrizio Marrazzo, a top gay rights activist with the campaign group Arcigay in Rome. “We hope that the politicians can see that this is not a law just for LGBT people, but for all Italians, for civil rights in Italy.”

  He added: “We don’t have more time. In other parts of Europe they did this 10 years ago.”

  If the proposal passes, it would grant both gay and heterosexual couples the right to enter civil unions recognised by the state and would allow a same-sex couple to share a name. Under certain circumstances, it would also extend parental rights to gay partners by allowing the child of a person who was previously in a heterosexual union to be legally adopted by a same-sex partner.

  This “stepchild provision” is the most contentious component of the legislation, and has drawn intense criticism from Catholic activists and Angelino Alfano, Interior Minister. 

  If the legislation passes, it would mark a significant break between Renzi, who is Catholic, and the Catholic church, which believes gay sexual acts are a sin and is staunchly opposed to gay marriage.

  is