Gay Marriage Scuppered in Australia as Public Vote Blocked
- Labor says plebiscite on marriage equality would be divisive
- Stalemate could see issue off legislative agenda for years
Pro-gay marriage supporters carry a rainbow banner and flags during a rally in Sydney on June 25. Australia's Labor party rejected Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s plan to hold a public vote on same-sex marriage.
Photographer: Saeed Khan/AFP via Getty ImagesA campaign to allow same-sex marriage in Australia was scuppered Tuesday as the main opposition Labor party rejected Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s plan to hold a public vote on the issue.
While supporting marriage equality, Labor says a public vote would be divisive and lead to the persecution of gay people, and is instead pressing the government to put the matter straight to parliament. With Turnbull resisting such a move, the ongoing stalemate potentially sinks any chances of marriage equality in the nation for another three years.