MEMBER for Wannon Dan Tehan’s vote on whether or not to legalise same-sex marriage will be tied to the outcome of a national poll.
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If the Coalition retains power after the federal election on Saturday, Australians would soon head back to the voting booths for a plebiscite on legalising same-sex marriage.
Mr Tehan has told the Warrnambool Standard that he would vote for or against amending the Marriage Act Parliament on the basis of any national plebiscite result.
Mr Tehan has previously said that his personal view on same-sex marriage is that the current definition of marriage should be kept.
He has now said that other parties in the House of Representatives and Senate should respect the mandate to hold a plebiscite if the Coalition is re-elected.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s policy on same-sex marriage is to have voters decide.
Any plebiscite outcome will not be legally binding and backbench Coalition Members of Parliament would largely be free to vote as they liked.
Liberal Members of Parliament in the ministry who vote against Coalition policies have usually been expected to resign or be sacked.
Mr Tehan was promoted to Minister for Veterans’ Affairs and Defence Materiel this year.
However, Mr Turnbull has stated that ministers will be able to vote with their consciences.
Labor leader Bill Shorten has pledged that if he becomes prime minister after Saturday the plebiscite will be cancelled.
Labor Members of Parliament would be required to vote in favour of same-sex marriage within the first 100 days of Mr Shorten being sworn in.
Labor candidate for Wannon Michael Barling said he would vote in Parliament for same-sex marriage if elected.
“We will amend the Marriage Act, just as Menzies did in 1960, and Howard did in 2004. They did so without the need for a plebiscite,” Mr Barling said.
“I’ll do what I have always said I will do: support marriage equality”
Mr Barling said a push by Coalition Members of Parliament and Senators to follow their electorates’ results in any plebisicite, and not the national result, was a reflection on Mr Turnbull’s leadership.
“This is payback by former prime minister Tony Abbott’s supporters against Malcolm Turnbull,” Mr Barling said.
“Turnbull has being grabbed on the throat by the right wing of his own party.
“This was always the plan, this was always going to happen.”
Greens candidate for Wannon Thomas Campbell said he would vote in Parliament for same-sex marriage and that the plebiscite should not go ahead.