Gay couples in France will legally be able to marry as well as adopt children beginning in 2013, Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said Tuesday in a speech before Parliament.

“In the first half of 2013, the right to marriage and adoption will be open to all couples, without discrimination. Our society is evolving, lifestyles and mentalities are changing. The government will respond to that.”

France24 reports that the speech was interrupted several times, both due to heckling from conservative lawmakers and because one member of parliament suddenly fell ill and had to be helped from the chamber with a cane.