In his first speech in Parliament yesterday, Liberal MP for Goldstein Tim “Freedom Boy” Wilson gave a moving tribute to his long-time fiance, Ryan, noting that they were still waiting to get married. Wilson is on board with the idea of a public vote on same-sex marriage, recently writing an op-ed for Fairfax in which he encouraged LGBTI Australians to stop fighting and embrace the plebiscite.
But it wasn’t so long ago that Wilson was vehemently arguing against the plebiscite. In a submission to the last parliamentary inquiry on the matter last year, Wilson, then a Human Rights Commissioner, argued eloquently that a plebiscite was not the way to resolve the issue of same-sex marriage:
“A public vote will do nothing to resolve the substantive issue in a way that unites Australians and takes the country forward together with a proper respect for the rights and freedoms of all.
“Issues of rights are not best resolved through a public vote. They are best resolved by responsible government.”
How times change. While other backbenchers are revolting over 18C and other issues close to their hearts, Wilson appears to be falling into line.
Wilson goes with whatever flow comes his way: IPA, human rights, now Libs. A true chameleon is our Tim, chasing well paid positions that his employers know he will execute to the best of his ability.
A famous Regurgitator song springs to mind. Just change some tenses and participles and you can predict the remainder of FreedomBoi’s career.