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ATTORNEY-GENERAL THE HON PHILIP RUDDOCK MP
NEWS RELEASE
Parliament House, Canberra ACT 2600 Telephone (02) 6277 7300 Fax (02) 6273 4102 www.law.gov.au/ag
30 March 2006 047/2006
STANHOPE BILL EQUATES CIVIL UNIONS WITH MARRIAGE
ACT Chief Minister Jon Stanhope has been caught out misrepresenting the intent of his Civil Unions Bill.
The Chief Minister says the proposed legislation will give recognition to same sex couples without conflicting with or changing the meaning of marriage. Indeed, he told ABC 666 this morning:
“I’ve gone to enormous lengths, at every stage, to make the point that civil unions are not marriage and can never be marriage.”
Either Mr Stanhope is being duplicitous or he has not read his own legislation. It is clear the ACT legislation goes further to matters which the Commonwealth regards itself as having a direct interest.
The recently introduced ACT Civil Unions Bill would amend the ACT Legislation Act to say:
‘in an Act or statutory instrument, a reference to a marriage includes a reference
to a civil union’.
Section 5 of the Bill states:
‘a civil union is to be treated for all purposes under territory law in the same
way as a marriage’
Section 19 states:
‘A marriage solemnised in a foreign country that cannot be recognised as a
marriage in Australia because of the Marriage Act 1961 (Cwlth), section 88EA
is a civil union for the purpose of territory law’.
The Bill also provides for the use of marriage celebrants authorised under Commonwealth legislation to perform civil union ceremonies and attend to the legal requirements for registering the unions.
Meanwhile, Shadow Attorney Nicola Roxon appears not to understand the Constitution when she accuses the Government of “interfering again in the law-making of states and territories”.
Attorney General News Release 2
Section 51(xxi) of the Australian Constitution gives the Commonwealth power to legislate in respect of marriage.
The Government strongly supports the fundamental institution of marriage.
Our position is that marriage is the union of a man and a woman voluntarily entered into for life to the exclusion of all others. Labor supported recent amendments made to the Marriage Act 1961 to reflect this position.
The Government will strongly oppose any action which would attempt to equate other relationships with marriage, or which would create confusion over the distinction between marriage and same sex relationships.
Media Contact: Charlie McKillop (02) 6277 7300/0419 278 715