n a historic and jubilant moment for Australian politics the bill to legalise same-sex marriage has passed the Senate today, without amendment, with 43 senators voting yes and 12 voting no.Many senators have described today as the proudest in their parliamentary careers.The bill will face its final hurdle in the House of Representatives next week when MPs resume the … [Read more...]
Explainer: Marriage Amendment Bill Finally Hits Parliament, What’s Next?
esterday a whopping 61.6% of Australians voted in favour of changing the Marriage Act 1961 (the Act) to allow same-sex couples to be legally married, with all states and territories recording a majority YES response.After Prime Minister Turnbull committed to legislate on the issue and make marriage equality a reality in Australia by Christmas, all eyes - both on a national … [Read more...]
Escalation, Vilification, Discrimination: Marriage Equality Debate Must Be Lawful
n the light of escalating tensions between the "yes" and "no" campaigns, both the Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, and leader of the opposition, Bill Shorten, have reiterated that the marriage equality debate should be civil, respectful and, importantly, lawful.Last week, emergency laws under the Marriage Law Survey (Additional Safeguards) Bill 2017 to ban vilification, … [Read more...]
High Court Will Hand Down Its Decision On Same-Sex Marriage Survey Tomorrow Afternoon
Chief justice Susan Kiefel has announced that the High Court will hand down its decision on the voluntary same-sex marriage postal survey tomorrow at 2.15pm.Full reasons will be published later. … [Read more...]
Bucket Intell-O-gence: Untangling The Postal Plebiscite Debacle
he wheels of government have churned out a postal plebiscite as the answer to the same-sex marriage (SSM) debate. For people like me who have become tired of the hackneyed slippery slope arguments being trotted out by those who oppose SSM, this was initially welcome news.Dig a little deeper though, and you’ll realise as I did that a postal plebiscite is just … [Read more...]
Same-Sex Unions Formally Recognised in ACT: But ls It Enough?
he Australian Capital Territory Government has long been a bold advocate of law reform surrounding same-sex unions. In 2013, it passed a bill that would legalise same-sex marriage in the state, only to have it ruled invalid by the High Court because it conflicted with the Federal Marriage Act 1961, which defines marriage as a heterosexual union. Under section 109 of the … [Read more...]
Bucket Intell-O-gence: Everything You Need To Know About The Same-Sex Marriage Plebiscite
As the 45th Federal Parliament gets underway, the legalisation of same-sex marriage is one of the issues dominating headlines.It is hard to know how the matter will play out, but there is one option that was first raised by the Abbott government - and that is to hold a plebiscite. This option is being pushed by the Turnbull government, and it has attracted a lot of … [Read more...]
Laws Of The Political Jungle: The Marriage Equality Bill
To everyday Australians, the inner workings of Parliament House can seem complex and confusing.When it comes to making Australian laws:what role do politicians play in the life cycle of a Bill? what rules govern whether a proposed Bill lives or dies? how are laws actually made?In the first of our Laws Of The Political Jungle series, we provide a … [Read more...]
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