PM rules out gay marriage vote
Australia will not follow Ireland and hold a referendum on gay marriage after the Prime Minister and Opposition Leader said they preferred that Parliament to resolve the issue.
It is believed Tony Abbott told colleagues he did not want the coalition to move on the issue until after Labor resolves its position at its national conference in late July.
So any parliamentary vote on gay marriage is unlikely until late this year at the earliest.
Once staunchly Catholic Ireland voted on Friday to allow same-sex marriage, with 62 per cent voting Yes compared with 38 saying No. Voter turnout was more than 60 per cent.
Ireland is the 19th nation to legalise gay marriage and the first to do so by a popular vote.
A bloc in the ALP Left led by Deputy Opposition Leader Tanya Plibersek wants Labor to change to a compulsory vote for gay marriage.
This is highly contentious inside Labor because some of its socially conservative members, including WA senator Joe Bullock, face expulsion if they cross the floor.
Opposition Leader Bill Shorten and the Right want Labor to retain a conscience vote, to avoid the party splintering.
The PM said gay marriage should "quite properly" go before Parliament if MPs wanted it raised, but a referendum was not needed because the Constitution need not change.
"Not for a second do I want to underestimate the feelings people have on this issue, both for and against," Mr Abbott said.
"There are a range of views inside the Parliament, there are a range of views inside my party room, frankly there's a range of views inside my family - inside the Abbott family I'm probably the last hold out for the traditional position."
One Liberal said this comment from Mr Abbott was particularly interesting because it acknowledged the PM was in the community minority.
Queensland Liberal MP Warren Entsch said he world was shifting on gay marriage and that Australia should too.
Mr Shorten said the time for marriage equality had come.
"If the Irish people can vote in favour of marriage equality, the question has to be asked, what is Tony Abbott's problem with it," he said.
