The former head of the Australian Christian Lobby says Christians have suffered consequences as a result of the legalisation of same-sex marriage.
Lyle Shelton, who stood down as managing director of the powerful ACL to run for parliament this year, said the government had ignored his warnings in the lead up to the 2017 plebiscite and passage of same-sex marriage laws.
Lyle Shelton says Christians have suffered complications as a result of same-sex marriage. Source: Sky
"We ploughed ahead with the change the definition of the marriage based on the Yes campaign saying there were no consequences," Mr Shelton told Sky News on Thursday night.
"I'm going to say that was a lie and not true. There's big complications and implications for people's freedom of speech and freedom of religion and parents' rights about gender indoctrination at schools."
He did not detail any examples of discrimination.
A review into religious freedoms in Australia found little evidence of discrimination against Christians or people of other faiths as a result of the new laws.
Lyle Shelton quit the ACL to stand as a candidate for Cory Bernardi's Australian Conservatives. Source: AAP
The review led by former Liberal Attorney-General Phillip Ruddock was triggered by the same-sex marriage plebiscite to ease concerns from conservatives.
When it was released in December, Mr Ruddock said he had consulted a wide range of people and received thousands of submissions, but "didn't find a lot of evidence of actual material discrimination that would be of concern".
The results were referred to the Australian Law Reform Commission which is due to report early next year, but the federal government has decided to move on religious discrimination legislation by the end of the year.
Attorney-General Christian Porter is putting the finishing touches on legislation designed to strengthen protections for people who hold religious beliefs.
