Tasmanian gay advocates have welcomed support for marriage equality from an Independent Liberal who will announce his candidature for the Upper House seat of Nelson today according to the Australian newspaper.
Hans Willink has told the Australian,
“If it makes them (gays) really happy and no one else suffers as a result, why would government stop them. I do support marriage equality because I’m not in the business of saving souls.”
Tasmanian Gay and Lesbian Rights Group spokesperson, Rodney Croome said,
“The fact that Hans Willink is an independent Liberal who openly supports marriage equality is a potential game changer in a seat like Nelson where there are many socially-progressive, pro-business voters.”
“It is also a reminder that more Liberals would openly support this issue – because they value freedom and family – if only the Party abandoned its lock-step discipline on the issue and allowed a conscience vote.”
The May 4th Tasmanian Upper House election is seen as important to the future of state same-sex marriage laws with the seats of three members who opposed reform up for election and reform only requiring two votes to pass.
All challenging candidates support marriage equality with the exception of those endorsed by the Liberal Party.
Australian Marriage Equality national director, Rodney Croome
