FELDHOFF: Senator and Minister for Finance, Penny Wong, thanks for joining us.
WONG: Good to be with you.
FELDHOFF: Well, the vote on the Marriage Equality Bill has just been lost in the lower house, 98 to 42. That must be a disappointment to you. Did you have high hopes that result might be different today?
WONG: Of course its disappointing to people in this country who believe in equality, and want to see that made law. But the day Tony Abbott said he wouldnt grant a free vote to the Liberal Party on this issue was the day on which the mathematics meant that the Bill was likely to be defeated. So, obviously, disappointing, but not surprising. But as I said in the Senate in my speech today, there are a lot of social changes in this country which werent won the first time round, and sometimes not even the second, so, we have to remember that. And we have to remember that this is an issue and a principle that is very personal and very important for a great many Australians and I think community sentiment is ahead of the Parliament.
FELDHOFF: As youve mentioned, your speech you made a pretty emotional address to Parliament on the Bill at the same time as Tony Abbott was announcing the resignation of Senator Cory Bernardi as Parliamentary Secretary over those now infamous comments. What do you think about his reaction to that? Was that the right move to accept his resignation?
WONG: I dont think that comments such as the ones that Senator Bernardi made have a place in todays Australia. And I dont think people who aspire to positions of responsibility in any part of the Australian Parliament or political system should be making those sorts of comments. We shouldnt be in Parliament to foster prejudice. Whatever our views, we should be in Parliament to try and inspire respect and tolerance and the better aspects and values of our society. Those are my views and I think theyre the views of the vast majority of Australian parliamentarians.
FELDHOFF: The Opposition Leader called the comments ill-disciplined he didnt call them wrong ...
WONG: Well, youd have to ask Tony Abbott ...
FELDHOFF: Do you see a distinction though?
WONG: I think the comments are wrong. But worse than that, I think theyre hurtful. And the thing that I am concerned about and one of the issues that I spoke on today is a message to young gay and lesbian Australians who might not be out or might be finding their way, that they mustnt take on offensive comments such as those that Senator Bernardi and some others have made in this debate. And they must always feel strength in who they are and also that the Australian community is more tolerant and accepting than some of those comments would have you believe.
FELDHOFF: Theres been a huge negative reaction to those comments. Does that buoy you?
WONG: Ive been buoyed greatly by the sort of shift weve seen in the community and the willingness of people to stand up for what they believe in. I think one of the most moving points in the campaign over the last year that Ive had was meeting parents of gay and lesbian children. Mums coming to see me to say please support my daughter or my son having equal rights. Its very moving and this is why, ultimately, I think we will succeed in this campaign for equality because it is too powerful a cause when people are standing up not only for principle but for the people they love.
FELDHOFF: Weve heard a lot in this debate on marriage equality, but given the reaction, do you think that there might be an irony that somehow Senator Bernardis comments may perhaps have done more for turning people in support of marriage equality than a lot of other things said in the debate ...
WONG: Yes, I suppose that is ironic, but sometimes you need the light to shine on the arguments against equality for it to be demonstrated that they dont stack up. And sometimes you need a light to shine on offensive and prejudiced views in order for people to turn away from them. I think the vast majority of Australians believe in a fair go and most people if you speak to them they say, well, if people want to get married they should be able to.
FELDHOFF: Youve said the comments were wrong and that theyre hurtful. Was resigning as Parliamentary Secretary enough in this instance?
WONG: Well, of course youd always like Cory to say something different wouldnt you, but thats a matter for his conscience. What I think is more important is that people speak out and say to the community, particularly to members of our community who might be really hurt by those comments, that these dont represent Australia and Australian values and I think that is the most important thing.
FELDHOFF: That vote again in the lower house was 98 to 42 against the Marriage Equality Bill theyre pretty significant numbers, a pretty obvious result. But how important do you believe the process of the vote is.
WONG: Extraordinarily important and I think since this vote has been on the horizon, the truth is the momentum has only been one way. You havent heard people whove previously said I support equality going back and saying, oh, actually, I dont. What you have had is members of the Parliament, including senior members of my own party, say I previously had this position but I now believe its important we vote for marriage equality. And I think that reflects both the human history and also where Australian society is. Its very hard to argue against the principle of equality and if you look at the advances in Australia over the decades, we might not always have done it the first or second time round, but we generally have a history where we head towards greater equality and greater rights within the community.
FELDHOFF: Would you care to, sort of, hypothesise about if a free conscience vote were allowed from the Opposition, what those numbers might have been in the lower house? I mean, you must be talking to people about what level of support there is on a personal level
WONG: I think theyd be certainly higher than the vote today and obviously some people have been prepared to speak our publicly despite Tony Abbotts position. But I think more importantly what we need to do in the weeks and months to come is to make sure we press for reform in the jurisdictions that are looking at it, whether its in South Australia or other states. And, second, we do need to continue to build support inside all parties of government, so Id encourage people to press their views not just to Labor Party members and Greens members, but also to members of the Liberal Party.
FELDHOFF: Senator Penny Wong, thanks so much for your time.
WONG: Good to be with you.
ENDS