A consultation on the possible legalisation of same-sex marriages closed on Friday after 50,000 people submitted responses.

The Scottish Government began the consultation in September, asking if marriage in Scotland should be allowed for gay people through a civil or religious ceremony.

Currently, same-sex couples can enter a civil partnership which carries full legal rights but the ceremony cannot be conducted in a church or other religious premises.

Religious groups including the Church of Scotland and the Catholic Church in Scotland are opposed to the government proposals.

Marriage equality campaigners say they have handed around 18,000 responses in to the Government's consultation.

A Scottish Government spokeswoman said: "The Government will now analyse the responses and consider what next steps to take.

"As was made clear when the consultation was launched, while we have expressed our initial view, we have given an assurance that all opinions will be listened to. No final views have been reached and therefore no decisions have been taken.

"The analysis of the responses will be published in the spring."

Supporters of same-sex marriage were met by a noisy counter-demonstration outside the Scottish Parliament on Thursday.

Members of the Humanist Society had gathered at Holyrood on the eve of the closure of the consultation but they were occasionally drowned out by religious supporters of the institution of marriage.

The Humanists were told to read the bible, while they in turn branded their opponents homophobes.

Author Christopher Brookmyre, president of the Humanist Society, celebrated his 20th wedding anniversary in early December.

He said he is "still waiting for someone to explain how my marriage would be in any way affected, retrospectively or in future, by the passing of this Bill".

Counter-rally organiser Donald Morrison, a Free Kirk elder from Inverness, said marriage is "God's law" and that it "is not for the Scottish Government to change marriage".

A recent survey found that more than 60% of Scots believe same-sex couples should have the right to marry, compared with 19% who disagree.