Though the Tasmanian gay marriage bill was defeated, supporters remain undaunted.
The Sydney Morning Herald reports:
The numbers for reform in Tasmania were lost tonight when the eighth voice against the bill was declared in the 15 member state upper house, the Legislative Council.
Already struggling for numbers in the council, the Same Sex Marriage bill fell after key undeclared MPs raised constitutional doubts.
“If opponents of this bill think they have put the debate to bed they are wrong,” said Australian Marriage Equality spokesman Rodney Croome.
Added Devonport MP Mike Gaffney, “If the possibility of an invalid bill stopped us, very little reform would take place,. If we vote this bill down…the issue will not go away. Most importantly, the Australian community is alive to the issue of marriage equality.”
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Andrew
It’s so frustrating that it passed in the Lower House but failed in the Upper House. Tasmania is treated like the backward cousins in Aus and it would’ve been a great kick-in-the-face to the mainlanders if this had passed. It seems like the only people stopping this are the out-of-date pollies as state and national polls continually show the public want this. Well, at least in Aus same-sex relationships are legally recognised and you can’t be fired or evicted for being gay/lesbian and since 1992 the Aus Defence Force prohibition on openly gay or lesbian members serving in the military. Each step is one closer to equality.