Gay couples have been singled out in a controversial same-sex marriage bill because a large number of Australians want to deny them services, says the Liberal senator behind the proposed legislation.



James Paterson, a senator for Victoria, released the legislation on Monday ahead of a result in Australia's national survey on same-sex marriage on Wednesday.

The bill quickly attracted the ire of legal experts and LGBT rights advocates, who say the broad right to deny goods and services to same-sex couples for their weddings is a significant rollback of anti-discrimination law.

Some, including Labor MP Tim Watts, have criticised Paterson for targeting gay couples, pointing out the inconsistency of granting exemptions for same-sex weddings, but not other marriages people may dislike for religious or secular reasons – for instance interracial or interfaith marriages, or divorcees re-marrying.

Paterson said it was simply a "practical or pragmatic" decision.



"The only significant issue in which a large proportion of the community are calling for these sorts of protections is on the issue of same-sex marriage," he told BuzzFeed News. "I’ve never heard anyone call for exemptions other than these."



"We’ll find out on Wednesday how many people vote 'no'; my guess would be 30, maybe 40% of people. That's a pretty significant proportion of our fellow Australians and I think their right to have their own belief should be protected."



Paterson, who supports same-sex marriage, rejected the idea that opposition to divorcees marrying — a position held by the Catholic Church — has community support.

"I’m coming to this as focused as possible and not weighing into other areas where there is not a community expectation that it be changed ... Unless I see really strong evidence for it, I’m pretty sceptical that it’s necessary."

President of the Law Council of Australia, Fiona McLeod, slammed the bill as an "extraordinary and perilous" winding back of anti-discrimination law.

"The bill would allow people to refuse to provide goods and services on the grounds of belief, thought and conscience, taking us well beyond religious beliefs into unchartered waters," she said.

Freedom from discrimination is a fundamental human right, McLeod said.

"The right to freedom of religion also appears in international law. While the freedom to have religious beliefs is also protected unconditionally, the manifestation or expression of those beliefs or religion may be subject to limitation where it impacts upon other fundamental rights."