LOCAL marriage equality campaigners hope that a Senate report released last week will pave the way for a vote in Federal Parliament on same-sex marriage.
Coochiemudlo Island resident Michael Burge said a focus of the report on the government's draft marriage equality bill was on whether wedding service providers should be able to refuse their services to same-sex couples.
The report found that civil celebrants should not be able to refuse to marry same-sex couples and that existing laws that allowed any minister of religion to refuse to marry any couple on religious grounds do not need to be extended.
Mr Burge said it was time for MPs to back a free vote on marriage equality.
“The community expects it, the Senate has given it a green light ... and as our 2016 petition of the Bowman electorate showed, the overwhelming majority of (MP Andrew) Laming's constituents support it,’’ he said.
Mr Burge said Mr Laming had long been a supporter of civil unions for same-sex couples, so allowing equal access to the Marriage Act was the next step for him and all federal MPs.
“Many Bowman constituents are now looking to Mr Laming to assist bring the matter to a head within the Liberal Party and soon in order to avoid the political storm that broke over the Coalition during the last federal election campaign,’’ he said.
Mr Laming said he did not oppose same sex marriage and would conduct a survey on the issue within weeks.
“I am one step away from voting yes or no because my job is to represent my community, not enforce my view on others,’’ he said.
“That step is a Redland-wide, reply-paid Australia Post all letterboxes dropped household survey which I fund and perform each year with a massive social media awareness campaign.
“... Redland City is Australia’s most polled community on this issue and my survey is the largest and most scientific conducted by any politician nationwide.’’
Mr Burge said Mr Laming’s annual survey was a one-vote-per-household form in which one of the many questions was usually about “gay marriage’’.
“That term is not about equality,’’ he said. “Same-sex attracted people don't want anything special, we just want equality.
“Gay marriage is like saying we'd prefer gay bus stops or gay supermarkets.’’