Australia: Warren Entsch rejects conservatives' call for 'right to refuse' gay weddings

Liberal MP Warren Entsch has called for exemptions to discrimination law for same-sex marriage to be “as narrow as possible”, rejecting calls by conservatives to allow businesses the “right to refuse” gay weddings.

Entsch told Guardian Australia that only ministers of religion and religious organisations should be able to refuse gay weddings, not other providers of goods and services.

Liberal National party MP George Christensen has called for venues, photographers and bakers to be allowed to refuse gay weddings, and senator Cory Bernardi said all businesses should be free to refuse service to anyone for any reason at all.

Cory Bernardi says all businesses should be free to refuse service to anyone

The ambit claims by the two conservatives set them on a collision course with the attorney general, George Brandis, who is believed to favour narrower protections for religious organisations and civil celebrants.

Entsch said: “We’ve always said protections for religious organisations are appropriate – that’s their decision, and there will be many other religious organisations happy to carry on those marriages.

“I don’t want [exemptions to go as far as] flower sellers and butchers. I don’t think the case is there for that – next they’ll be arguing for a right to refuse on grounds of race, colour or ethnic background. It’s no different.”

Christensen said ministers of religion and churches should be “fully exempt ... from actually being forced to have same-sex marriages performed inside churches”.

“What about the person of faith who is a wedding photographer or a wedding cake maker or owns a particular venue that just doesn’t agree with same-sex marriage and that venue’s called upon for a reception?” he said on Lateline on Wednesday.

Christensen said the issue pitted freedom of conscience and religion against “a right that’s only just popped up in recent times and that is the so-called right to same-sex marriage and to identify your complete persona based on your sexual inclination”.

“If they are supplying the cake and decorations, there needs to be exemptions of people of faith to say ‘no, I don’t want to participate in that event’.”

On 14 September Guardian Australia reported that a Liberal party room briefing revealed the government would propose new protections for “conscientious objectors” to same-sex marriage.

The report of exemptions for “conscientious objectors” was confirmed by the shadow attorney general, Mark Dreyfus, and Labor’s equality spokeswoman, Terri Butler, at a meeting with Brandis on Monday.

Brandis has not said how extensive the proposed “protections” will be, but Guardian Australia understands his view is they should only extend to religious organisations and civil celebrants.

Long-time marriage equality advocate Rodney Croome said he was “deeply concerned” about the government’s intentions.

Only religious ministers should be able to refuse gay weddings and not civil celebrants, registrars or private wedding service providers, he said.

Croome said the government needed to explain whether exemptions would single out same-sex couples or would allow discrimination against divorced partners, partners of mixed faith or mixed race.

“Singling out same-sex couples will be direct discrimination, while allowing discrimination against other couples will cause an outcry, so either way the government can’t win and should just drop the whole idea,” Croome said.

He said the government’s failure to clarify discrimination exemptions was “yet another reason parliament should not support a plebiscite”.

The Australian Marriage Equality national spokeswoman, Shirleene Robinson, said “churches would continue to be free to select which couples they marry after any changes to the Marriage Act”.

“We do not support the removal of anti-discrimination laws which protect LGBTI Australians from being discriminated against by businesses or by public officials,” she said.

Asked whether civil celebrants should be able to refuse gay weddings, Entsch said there should be a process for them to record their objection when they register as celebrants.



“You can’t do it down the line - you’re paid to do a job. If you don’t want to be a celebrant, you don’t have to be.”