Cheryl Parrott, a counsellor at Rich Relationships Counselling in Sydney, Australia, implied same-sex relationships could be unsafe for children, in comments made public on Tuesday.



"Research has shown that children are safest in their biological families. That the highest rate of child abuse is usually perpetrated by an adult not the biological parent of a child," she wrote.

"In a same sex relationship one (if not both) of the adults will not be the biological parent of that child."

Parrot made the comments in a public submission to the current senate inquiry into the government's proposed draft marriage equality bill.

She also argued that marriage is, by definition, exclusive, and should remain so.

"It excludes multiple partners (which is illegal in Australia), it excludes children (also illegal in Australia), it excludes animals," she wrote.