Challenge for Turnbull is to ensure 4.8 million No voters aren’t ignored

Coalition for Marriage spokesman Lyle Shelton speaks after the results of the same-sex marriage postal survey were revealed. Photo: Getty Images

The victory for the Yes case is overwhelming but the support for the No case is a sizeable minority that cannot be ignored without political peril or further alienation.

The Yes supporters cannot adopt a winner-takes-all approach and nor can the No case adopt a dog-in-the-manger attitude.

One of our volunteers had this happen to them this morning in Sydney. This type of behaviour by either side is unacceptable & unAustralian. pic.twitter.com/ko2rbAJ96l

— Lyle Shelton (@LyleShelton) November 14, 2017

Legislation for same-sex marriage is now in the hands of the politicians and for it to truly reflect the spirit of the people’s vote there is going to have to be compromise: the Yes campaign has to recognise greater religious protections are needed and the No case has to drop the bakers’ bans on wedding cakes.

George Brandis’s move late yesterday to broaden protections for religious beliefs and supporters of traditional marriage was the first indication that Malcolm Turnbull was prepared to temper his early, effusive greeting of the Yes vote and keep his undertaking to expand religious protections.

But cautious Labor acceptance of the changes to the Smith bill, which had provided only the barest protections for religious ministers, and the Greens’ defiant opposition suggests partisan trouble for the Coalition and danger for the legislation itself.

Remember, it was partisan fighting, Coalition splits and Greens intransigence that prevented Australia getting an early legislated response to climate change through an emissions trading scheme.

Attempts to score partisan points, refusal to compromise or destabilising Turnbull’s leadership will not only threaten Coalition stability, it will also threaten the existence of the legislation itself.

Bill Shorten has had a victory and should not use the same-sex legislation as a battering ram to damage Turnbull or create further chaos and the ALP and the Liberals must be wary of refusing to deal with the No camp or pushing ­people, including Labor senators, to the wall in a conscience vote.

On the conservative side, the popular vote — a Liberal-Tony Abbott creation — should not be used in defiance of the people’s will or to further split the Coalition.

The vast departure from normal voting patterns in electorates is evidence of the depth of consideration voters gave to the conscience issue of same-sex marriage and the societal impact such change to an institution would have.

For MPs, including Labor and Liberal and Yes and No supporters, to match that depth of commitment, it means the legislation will have to be dealt with in a timely and fair fashion.

While the Yes vote won overwhelmingly, it was clear there were grave concerns about protections for religious freedoms, freedom of speech and parental rights represented in the significant No vote.

Concentrations of ethnic populations — especially immigrants from the Middle East including Muslims, Coptic Christians and Maronites in western Sydney — as well as fundamental Christian, Catholic, Anglican and Greek Orthodox communities, demonstrated strong opposition to same-sex marriage, which has added to the political peril for Labor MPs being seen to ignore the minority.

Likewise, Coalition MPs are already pointing to demonstrations of support for traditional marriage among conservative voters who feel deserted by the Liberal Party leadership. For all these reasons it is incumbent on all sides to ­conduct the next few weeks of legislative debate with the aim of meeting the expectations of the supporters of same-sex marriage but also ­reassuring the rest that the legislation is not a threat.

The Smith bill has had a recognition of the threat to religious conscience from the beginning and was further expanded yesterday to allay fears about religious persecution and there has to be room for the Yes supporters to provide further protections.

On the other side, Liberal ­conservatives also must give ground in light of the vote and they should concentrate on religious freedoms and parental rights and forget the distraction of commercial protections for cake-bakers.