The Project hosts slammed for ‘disrespectful’ gay marriage debate

Things got seriously intense during Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs Penny Wong’s appearance on The Project last night.

The South Australian Senator appeared on the news program to talk about same sex marriage, when hosts Carrie Bickmore, Steve Price and Waleed Aly pressed her on why she disagrees with a nationwide plebiscite.

“What we want is a free parliamentary vote,” Senator Wong explains to Carrie. “It would mean we’d see marriage equality in a few weeks.”

“But Senator, the free vote isn’t on the table,” Carrie says in the clip above. “So isn’t a plebiscite better than nothing?”

Penny replies: “But who can change that, Carrie? The Prime Minister can.”

Carrie says: “But the Prime Minister has said though that he is going to be doing the plebiscite. So if that’s the option, isn’t it better than waiting another few years?”

“I don’t accept that’s the case,” Penny responds. “I think that over the time I’ve been in parliament and been engaged in this, we’ve seen politicians shift, in part [by] their own journey and from talking to people, but also because the population has shifted – the community has shifted.

“I reckon we should keep the pressure on for a free vote,” she adds. “That’s what we’re elected to do.”

Steve Price then chimed in: “But we had an election and the Coalition won, you didn’t win remember? That was their policy.”

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The Project panel then continued to push the issue with Senator Wong… and Twitter went wild with anger.

One viewer wrote: “@BickmoreCarrie, thank you but I’d rather wait than to have to ask yours and others’ permissions for my right to marry #theprojecttv.”

Adding, “Tonight’s @theprojecttv was the first time I’ve disagreed with Waleed Aly. Election wins don’t mean mandate. #theprojecttv #noplebiscite.”

Other viewers praised Senator Wong for her patience throughout the segment.

“What a terrible non-interview by @theprojecttv team,” one viewer wrote to Twitter. “I admire @SenatorWong’s patience. #marriageequality #TheProjectTV.”

Other viewers pointed out the obvious…

“We’re dealing with the practical and the real now,” Waleed adds later in the interview, after discussing the benefits of a plebiscite over a free parliamentary vote.

But Senator Wong totally disagrees: “People have changed their minds on this issue in Canberra because the community has.”

Carrie added after the interview that a plebiscite has never been a good idea in the first place.

“It’s never been the best case scenario,” she said.

The national vote emerged as the Coalition's policy under former Prime Minister Tony Abbott. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull reportedly promised conservatives he wouldn't change that position after he was elected, despite favouring a free vote.

The vote would cost at least $160 million and would not be held anytime this year.

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