Federal Labor called on to uphold marriage election promise

Australian Christian Lobby Media Release

September 2009

The Australian Christian Lobby has called on the Federal Government to honour its election commitment to uphold marriage between a man and a woman in the face of reports the ACT Labor caucus has decided to back a Greens bill which mimics marriage.

ACL Managing Director Jim Wallace said he expected the Federal Government to intervene to ensure the election commitment was honoured.

“We expect the Federal Government to stand by the promise it took to the 2007 election not to allow schemes which ‘mimic marriage’,” Mr Wallace said.

“This is a commitment that was made for the life of the Government.”

In the lead-up to the 2007 election Labor said its policy “explicitly committed Labor to ensure that any such (State or Territory) scheme of relationship registration would not mimic marriage.” http://www.australiavotes.org/policies/index.php?topic_ids=5#question1

Mr Wallace said this was not an issue of Territory rights as it was not appropriate for nine or ten people to implement far-reaching social reforms which undermined Federal legislation.

It was also not an issue of rights or entitlements for same-sex couples as these had been addressed through other legislative measures at State or Territory level.

For more information contact Glynis Quinlan 0408 875 979