Last month, while we were gearing up for the election, the Australian state of Queensland took a step towards equality when a member's bill for civil Unions was introduced to the House. The bill is now back from committee, and will be going through its second reading tonight. As usual, the Christians are mobilising to protect bigotry, and the vote is expected to be tight:
A bill to allow same-sex civil unions is likely to come down to the wire when it's voted on in Queensland Parliament this week.The vote will apparently be early tomorrow morning, New Zealand time. While its only the second reading, a majority here will signal strongly that the bill will pass. Unlike other Australian states, Queensland doesn't have a Senate, so there'll be nothing to stop it from becoming law.The push will fail if just seven Labor MPs vote with the Liberal National Party and crossbenchers against the bill, assuming all eligible members attend the vote.
Two Labor MPs have so far confirmed they will oppose Deputy Premier Andrew Fraser's private member's bill, while a third MP said she was more likely to vote against it than for it.
[...]
The LNP's 31 MPs are set to vote together as a bloc against the bill, while most of the minor party and independent parliamentarians have signalled they will also oppose it.