PM urges Yes vote in survey

MALCOLM Turnbull has made his strongest pitch yet for Australians to vote in favour of legalising same sex marriage, telling critics the sky would not fall in if the law changes.

The Prime Minister fronted a campaign launch yesterday to encourage people to vote Yes in the postal survey, which will be sent out from tomorrow.

He said he believed the right to marry was a “conservative principle” and reassured his conservative colleagues religious freedoms would be protected by new laws to allow same sex marriage.

But a core group of Liberal and National politicians and members are ramping up their own No vote campaign.

At a secret meeting at Victoria’s Liberal Party headquarters at the weekend, members briefed by Australian Christian Lobby managing director Lyle Shelton.

Mr Shelton told a group of about 60 Liberals that the party had lost control by not making a unified effort to defend traditional marriage.

Mr Turnbull said that if the Yes vote was successful, he expected a Bill to legalise same sex marriage would “sail through” Parliament by the end of the year.

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten told a marriage equality rally in Sydney that LGBTIQ Australians “will never walk alone”, promising Labor would support them in the face of hateful arguments against changing the law.

The Government is negotiating with Labor to introduce new laws in Parliament this week to set out guidelines and safeguards for advertising during the six-week postal survey period.