Isn’t it true that the Government deliberately sent this issue to the Court, so that they can now hide behind the Court’s decision?
No. The Government felt strongly that the opinion of the Supreme Court on theReference was needed to provide Parliament with the advice of the highest court in the land on the key legal issues. For example, the Government felt it was important to determine clearly the constitutionality of the draft legislation and whether the Supreme Court agreed that the Charter protected religious freedom. Those key questions and others have been clarified and the debate in Parliament can now proceed on the basis of those findings.The Court decision underscores the importance of the democratic role of Parliament. Parliament was always going to have the final say on same-sex marriage.
