Big ‘L’ Liberals – we’re looking at you Peter Dutton – continue to push the expensive, non-compulsory, nonbinding plebiscite despite massive backlash from voters.
To be fair, they’ve updated the plan a bit. Dutty and friends are now suggesting it be done by snail mail instead, in a move one can only assume is an attempt to massively reduce the amount of people who vote in the ~~overpriced opinion poll~~ plebiscite that MPs don’t need to pay any attention to anyway.
You’ve got to admire them for resisting overwhelming public pressure to change laws that reflect the wants and needs of their constituents.
By admire, I mean question why they can’t do the only thing we vote for them to do.
But now, Australia’s longest-running annual lifestyle survey has discovered a shift in the mindset of Australians.
Interviewing the same 17,000 people each year, the HILDA report found Australians are becoming more progressive, with 67 per cent of women and 59 per cent of men stating that homosexual couple should have the same marriage, parenting and employment rights as their heterosexual counterparts.
That’s a giant leap from the 43 per cent of women and 32 per cent of men that agreed to the statement in 2005.
“We’ve seen a very profound shift in attitudes to this statement,” report author Professor Roger Wilkins said.
“It’s quite clear that community sentiment has shifted in favour of marriage equality.”
The study also noted that a smaller percentage of immigrants, Indigenous Australians, and lower-income earners agreed with the statement.
This study, and the many like it, almost feel like we have all the evidence we need for politicians to just do their job and we don’t need a costly plebiscite… almost.
Despite the Senate rejecting the plebiscite, conservative Liberal Party members insist the party should stick with the policy, with many referring to the Coalition agreement with the Nationals.
Interestingly, the document in which the promise of a plebiscite is allegedly enshrined isn’t released to the public, and supporters of the reform within the Liberal Party claim it’s not explicitly mentioned.
Liberal senator Dean Smith is now drafting a private members’ bill to legalise same-sex marriage, with a partyroom debate expected when Parliament returns next week.
Last week, the Prime Minister said Liberal MPs had the right to cross the floor for a conscience vote, meaning four Liberal MPs would need to vote with Labor to then bring on a vote on same-sex marriage.
Just a reminder that Germany had it done within a week from start to finish…
