Survey on thin ice

Expert says court could halt marriage poll

THE Turnbull Government could be forced to come up with a Plan C on same-sex marriage within weeks, as controversy reins over a new “no” case advertisement.

The High Court will next week hear a challenge to the Government’s plan for a postal survey on changing marriage laws.

The voluntary survey was Plan B after the Senate blocked the compulsory plebiscite promised by the Coalition at the 2016 election.

Constitutional expert George Williams said he expected a quick answer to whether the Government had the power to spend money on the survey without legislation having passed parliament.

“It is facing an uphill battle in this case, with its position running counter to line of High Court authority,” Prof Williams said yesterday.

“Over a series of recent decisions, the High Court has found that the Federal Government generally requires parliamentary approval to spend taxpayers’ money.”

The Government found the $122 million needed to run the survey by using laws to make an advance payment to the Finance Minister in circumstances where there is an urgent need for spending and the situation was unforeseen.

Same-sex marriage advocates who are taking the matter to the court argue the spending does not fit the category of either “urgent” or “unforeseen”.

If the survey is found to be unconstitutional, Prime Minis- ter Malcolm Turnbull will face a choice of doing nothing further on same-sex marriage this term, allowing a private member’s bill to go to parliament or having another shot at passing the plebiscite bill.

Meanwhile, Labor has described as hurtful and offensive an ad featuring three mothers highlighting their concerns about how the marriage law changes will affect what is taught and promoted in schools.

One of the women featured on the commercial tells viewers her son had been told he could wear a dress to school next year if he wanted to.

But the principal of the Victorian high school from which the mother withdrew her children yesterday said the offer to students “never happened”.

Progressive Christians say the TV advertisement is “fearmongering”, “irresponsible” and “wrong”.

Australian Christians for Marriage Equality yesterday launched its own national campaign encouraging people to vote Yes in the postal survey on gay marriage. It says a Coalition for Marriage ad released overnight did not represent the views of most Christians.

Almost 100,000 Australians have been added to the electoral roll ahead of the samesex marriage postal survey — two-thirds of whom are under 25 years old.

More than 98,000 people were added to the roll, of which 65,000 are aged 18 to 24. More than 16 million Australians are eligible to vote.