The Australian Greens have vowed to fight for the ACT's proposed new laws on gay partnership rights if they are challenged in Federal Parliament.
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The party's leader, Senator Bob Brown, welcomed the new legislation yesterday and said he and his colleagues would defend the Bill if either house of Parliament moved to impose its veto on the same-sex partnership laws.
The ACT Labor Government's latest attempt to legislate for same-sex partnerships looks set for an easy passage through the territory's Legislative Assembly next year with the support of the ACT Greens. But they will be opposed by the Canberra Liberals.
The laws are modelled on a Bill first introduced by the ACT Labor Government in 2006 and disallowed that same year by the federal Liberals with support from the ALP.
ACT Attorney-General Simon Corbell took advantage yesterday of recent changes to territories' rights laws, championed by Senator Brown, and introduced a Bill that would fully restore civil ceremonies and recognition of same-sex partnerships in the ACT.
The Bill comes on the back of the success at Labor's national conference on Saturday of ACT Deputy Chief Minister Andrew Barr's two-year campaign to have gay marriage placed on the ALP's national platform.
Senator Brown lent his support yesterday to the ACT Government's move.
''I've always said that it's quite proper that the ACT legislature should look at this legislation,'' the Greens leader said.
''It has always been the right of the Assembly and it is a good thing that they are having a look again at improving the rights of people who are discriminated against on the basis of their sexuality.
''The Greens have been very clear about the ACT's right to pass this legislation and it is something I will defend in the houses of Federal Parliament.''
Canberra Liberals leader Zed Seselja said yesterday his party would be opposing the legislation when it comes up for debate early next year.
''We support the traditional view of marriage,'' Mr Seselja said. ''This is marriage by another name and I think that anyone who looks at this will see that even though it's called a civil union it is simply marriage by another name.''
But Mr Seselja, who does not have the numbers to block the Bill's passage, said he believed that a challenge to the laws in the Federal Parliament, which has the power to overturn ACT laws, was unlikely.
ACT Greens attorney-general spokesman Shane Rattenbury said he and his three Assembly colleagues would support the reforms but he did not want to see the issue become a distraction for the push to reform the Commonwealth Marriage Act.
This reporter is on Twitter: @noeltowell