Australia's Labour government has agreed to a review of relationship recognition for same-sex couples, but conceded no ground on marriage or federal civil unions. The policy of nationally mandated state-based relationship registers such as operate in Tasmania, Victoria and the ACT has been dropped pending the review but Senior cabinet minister Anthony Albanese said the new stance was a compromise that would satisfy no one but the status quo of relationship recognition had failed. “It is certainly not my ideal position. I have a view that my relationship because I happen to be heterosexual, is not undermined by somebody else’s relationship because it is homosexual,” he said to loud applause at the ALP National Conference this morning. He said the compromise brought the issue forward and the debate would continue until gay and lesbian Australians had full equality. “Labour values are that all people are born equal regardless of their sexuality.” Since 2004 Australian law has defined marriage as the union of a man and a woman. The Australian Labour Party is on record as supporting the enactment of legislation prohibiting discrimination on the basis of a person’s sexual orientation or gender status, and the removal of such discrimination from Commonwealth legislation. It has said it will ensure that all couples, whether by marriage or de facto, do not suffer discrimination and ensure nationally consistent equal rights for all couples in federal and state laws.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Sunday, 2nd August 2009 - 12:21am