Yukon government won't challenge gay marriage ruling

The Yukon Territory's government said it won't challenge a court ruling making the Canadian territory the fourth district in the nation to allow gay and lesbian couples to marry. "I see no reason why there should be any appeal," Yukon premier Dennis Fentie said Thursday. "Licenses will be issued." Justice Peter McIntyre on Wednesday changed the territory's common law definition of marriage to mean the voluntary union for life of two people to the exclusion of all others. The Yukon ruling came after Stephen Dunbar and Rob Edge filed a petition for being refused a wedding license earlier this year. In the three provinces where gay marriage is permitted--British Columbia, Ontario, and Quebec--Canada's federal government has decided not to appeal the decisions. Fentie said Ottawa should address the gay marriage issue. "It's high time the federal government dealt with the definition of marriage," Fentie said.