Turnbull government frontbenchers are publicly disagreeing with George Brandis after the Attorney-General rejected conservative arguments against same-sex marriage and said he would not be "tricked" into debating wider issues of religious freedom.
On Sunday, Senator Brandis said religious freedoms would continue to be protected and insisted the upcoming postal survey was only about allowing two people of the same gender to marry.
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Our most successful Olympian appeared at the City2Surf run encouraging all australians who aren't already enrolled to vote in the postal plebiscite on same sex marriage to do so.
But conservative frontbench colleagues Zed Seselja and Angus Taylor have disagreed, warning of the consequences of change.
Former prime minister Tony Abbott has again drawn the public ire of his high-profile sister for his own argument about the broader implications of same-sex marriage. Liberal councillor Christine Forster rejected her brother's claim that changing the Marriage Act raised questions about "gender fluidity".
Senator Brandis, a supporter of change, said on Sunday he would not be "tricked" by Mr Abbott into fighting on wider issues.
"What I am not going to do is be tricked by Tony Abbott and others who are trying to trying to turn a debate about one issue, that is about whether same-sex couples should be able to marry, into a broader debate about religious freedom because that is not what this is about," Senator Brandis told Sky News.
The Attorney-General said religious freedoms would be protected under existing law and "very thorough" measures in a bill to change the Marriage Act.
On Monday, Senator Seselja, the Assistant Minister for Social Services and Multicultural Affairs, said: "I respectfully disagree with George Brandis on this issue. If you look around the world, issues of religious freedom has flowed when we've seen a change to the definition of marriage.
"It does impact upon religious freedom, it does impact upon parental rights and it does impact on freedom of speech."
Mr Taylor, the Assistant Minister for Cities and a rising conservative star inside the Coalition, told Sky News: "There is no doubt that [religious freedom] has been a major issue in jurisdictions where same-sex marriage has been implemented."
Mr Taylor said religious freedom "needs to be part of this debate".
Disagreement over broader implications has quickly emerged as a key theme of public debate ahead of a postal survey, with Mr Abbott and other opponents seeking to frame the question as a wider issue of religious freedom, freedom of speech, the protection of children, political correctness and radical social change.
Supporters of change reject this view, arguing it is simply about allowing equality in the institution of marriage.
On Sunday, Mr Abbott said allowing same-sex couples to marry "raises issues beyond marriage", questioning whether "it would be possible to exclude gender fluidity discussions from schools if gender fluidity is contemplated by the Marriage Act?".
A bill that legalises marriage between "any two persons" raises issues beyond marriage.. 1/2
— Tony Abbott (@TonyAbbottMHR) August 20, 2017
..E.g. would it be possible to exclude gender fluidity discussions from schools if gender fluidity is contemplated by the Marriage Act? 2/2
— Tony Abbott (@TonyAbbottMHR) August 20, 2017
Ms Forster, who sits on the City of Sydney council and who wants to marry her long-term partner Virginia Edwards, responded by saying the legal change is about marriage and "nothing more".
"Allowing [two] people to marry has nothing to do with 'gender fluidity'," she tweeted, marking the latest public spat between the two siblings.
A Newspoll published on Monday found 67 per cent support for change among people who will "definitely" respond to the postal survey. It also found strong support for protection of religious freedom.
Australia's most senior Catholic, Archbishop of Melbourne Denis Hart, has warned teachers, nurses and other workers employed by the church might be fired if they marry same-sex partners under a legal change.
Archbishop Hart told Fairfax Media the church expected its employees to uphold its teachings "totally" and defiance would treated "very seriously".
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