Validity of survey in doubt

Tasmanian anti-marriage equality group Save Marriage Coalition has released survey results it claims show the issue is not important to Tasmanians.

The survey, conducted by a consulting group on behalf of Save Marriage Coalition, asked a sample of more than 400 Tasmanians chosen at random from the White Pages to rank the importance of issues on a scale of one to 10.

Health and hospital services ranked highest in the survey, with 84.3 per cent of respondents giving the issue a score of 8, 9 or 10. Same-sex marriage was ranked 11th overall, out of 12 issues mentioned.

Save Marriage Coalition spokesperson and former Federal Liberal Senator for Tasmania Guy Barnett said these results indicate the Tasmanian Government should stop pushing for marriage equality, calling it a “distraction”.

Tasmanian marriage equality advocate Rodney Croome told Star Observer the survey says more about Save Marriage Coalition than about Tasmanians’ opinions on same-sex marriage.

“It’s telling that they didn’t ask a question about the central issue: should same-sex couples be allowed to marry?” Croome said.

“I take that as tacit acknowledgement that they know the majority supports
marriage equality.

“This indicates they know they’ve lost.”

Croome argued the survey was flawed and irrelevant because the questions asked were leading and heavily politicised.

“It is irrelevant to compare the importance people give jobs, health and education to the importance they give marriage equality, because the former affect everyone while the latter only directly affects a minority of Tasmanians,” he said.

Last year a poll of 1,000 Tasmanians showed 61 per cent of people in the state support
marriage equality.