Jill Hall (Shortland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to support the Marriage Amendment Bill 2012, which is before the parliament. I find the last member's contribution to this debate quite offensive, because, as a member of a parliament voting on a private member's bill where I have been given the right to have a conscience vote, I take that very seriously. A lot of consideration has gone into this for me, and I take a very personal perspective to this piece of legislation.

I would like to commence by thanking each and every person who has contacted me on this debate. Like the member for Canberra, I have been contacted by friends who support the legislation and friends who oppose it. There are people whom I respect very much in my everyday life who oppose this legislation and people who have similar feelings and support the legislation. I ask each and every one of them to respect where I am coming from in relation to this legislation and to hear my story.

As well as that, I would like to put on the record that I conducted a survey and, overwhelmingly on that survey, people supported same-sex marriage. It was only a sample—it was only a couple of thousand people—and I think, on that, about 80 per cent supported same-sex marriage.

There were people who completed the survey outside the electorate. But for those within the electorate it was about 80 per cent. It was higher for those outside the electorate.

I have been contacted by a number of people via email, and I have met with people both in my electorate office and here in Parliament House. Regardless of people's positions, I have listened and I have taken into account their thoughts in relation to same-sex marriage. I would like to share with the parliament my story and the reason that I am finally 100 per cent behind supporting same-sex marriage. I have three nieces and a nephew. Their father and mother died when they were very young. Their father was a person who was maybe bisexual but was probably more likely homosexual. He died when the children were very young. My mother-in-law, a strong Christian and a very conservative woman, was responsible for raising these children. The eldest and second eldest are both in heterosexual relationships. I attended the second eldest niece's wedding in March. I was overwhelmed by the fact that my nephew, who had been married in the UK to his same-sex partner, was at the wedding. The youngest of my nieces was there with her partner. Once again, she is in a same-sex relationship. 92-year-old mother-in law is very accepting of her grandchildren even through initially it was confronting. It was a wonderful celebration of the marriage of the second eldest niece. My youngest niece said to me, 'Jill, could you do for me whatever you can so that I and my partner will be able to be married.' I thought about it and I thought: is it fair that these two women in a very loving relationship, two women who are highly educated, two women who care deeply for each other, are unable to marry, whereas the older two girls can. I reached the conclusion that she was being denied justice, she was being denied equity, she was being denied the ability to share in that same relationship, that same institution.

I understand that some people come from a religious background. I have been approached by both sides: those who are members of the clergy who support same-sex marriage and those who are members of religious organisations and clergy who oppose same-sex marriage. I have listened carefully to what all of them have said. This morning I noticed that I have received emails from both the Australian Council of Churches, which is opposing it, and the another group of religious leaders who are supporting it. So even amongst the church this is an issue that has caused division. There are divided opinions on this issue. In my electorate last week I received a very moving email from a woman whose perspective on it is very similar to my own.

She has two children who have been married and she has a daughter who is in a same-sex relationship. She would like for them to be able to enjoy the same situation that her other two children have. My good friend Fredric Holten and his partner Christopher have constantly lobbied me that they should be able to share being part of a marriage institution, as their brothers and sisters are.

I would never, never impose upon any minister or clergy that they should have to marry people in a same-sex relationship who wish to be married, but I do believe that people in same-sex relationships should have a choice. Currently, people who are in heterosexual relationships can choose whether or not they wish to marry, but those in same-sex relationships do not have that choice.

I support the private member's bill. I am pleased to see that he has just come into the chamber. I thank him for putting it before the parliament. I do agree we need to vote on it. I think that it is time that this legislation was voted on. When it is voted on I will be supporting it, both from the personal perspective I bring to it, from my nieces and nephew, and also from the perspective that I think that it is fair. It is a human right—people should have the right to formally have their marriage and their relationship documented.

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