Former opposition leader, Malcolm Turnbull, supports marriage equality in Australia

Former Opposition leader Malcolm Turnbull has urged his successor Tony Abbott to support a conscience vote on the issue of same-sex marriage. Opinion polls reveal the community is in support of same-sex marriage with a Galaxy Research poll released yesterday showing 76 per of Coalition voters back a conscience vote. Mr Abbott continues to insist the Coalition strongly opposes any change to the Marriage Act, but he has not vetoed a conscience vote. During an interview on the ABC 7.30 report, Turnbull said that marriage did not belong exclusively to the religious sector because not only LGBT people, but also divorced people, are refused marriage within some churches... like the Catholic Church and the Sydney Anglican diocese.
Part of the transcript below
TURNBULL:...I mean, one's religious views really should be put to one side because, you know, there are many people, millions of people who are married under the Australian Marriage Act who could not be married in a Catholic church, for example. So, the issue is what unions should the state recognise? It's a big issue. I think it's an important one. It's not the most important issue confronting Australia at the moment, but it is important, and I think all members of Parliament should approach it with an open mind and have regard to what is clearly a changing sentiment - and not just in Australia, Leigh. I mean, New York State has voted to allow gay marriages. The Conservative leader - Prime Minister in the United Kingdom David Cameron is supporting, and clearly it will be passed, legislation to provide for gay marriages in the UK. So there are big changes afoot and that's something that as an MP I've gotta have regard to.

LEIGH SALES: You said at the start of that answer that you hadn't changed your view, but that you were looking at the issue with an open mind. Does that mean that you are, I guess, considering changing your view - open to changing your mind on the issue?

MALCOLM TURNBULL: Well, I think you should always be open to changing your mind in light of different - you know, changed arguments and different circumstances. Again, a lot of people see this as something that affects a religious point of view and I profoundly disagree with that. This is a - there is a big difference between relationships that the state approves and relationships that a church or any other form of religion would approve of. And there are many marriages - not a majority, but it'd be a lot of marriages, many marriages, that would not be approved by one church or another, or one religion or another. So, you know, we've - there is a distinction between church and state here.


Now Calamity that's not quite right... Sydney Anglicans will marry a divorcee who can prove infidelity on the part of their ex. They love surveillence ... and that's why they have an affinity with some Africans who use surverillance to 'dob in a gay'!

Sign this petition ...pushing for Tony Abbott (leader of the opposition) to allow a conscience vote among the Liberal Party members.