SA Senator Cory Bernardi tells Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull to resign from Cabinet for gay views Malcolm Turnbull said he believes the Coalition should allow a free vote on the issue of same sex marriage. THE gay marriage debate has flared up within the Government in the wake of a High Court decision to overrule ACT laws allowing the unions. Some Coalition MPs say the sentiment within the party is shifting along with the electorate's. Several speculated that the shift to a conscience vote on the matter - which could lead to Federal same-sex marriage laws - was increasingly likely to happen under an Abbott government. More: High Court strikes down ACT's gay marriage laws Most Australians are in favour of legalising gay marriage so some Coalition MPs think a conscience vote might help defuse it as a political issue. Prime Minister Tony Abbott says he does not expect gay marriage legislation to come before parliament. Labor is in favour of gay marriage and would allow their MPs to choose how to vote, whereas the Coalition policy is to vote as a bloc against it, which ensures it will never become law. But views within the Coalition are not heterogeneous. On Monday South Australian Senator Cory Bernardi called on senior Liberal Malcolm Turnbull to resign from his frontbench position because Mr Turnbull - the Communications Minister and former party leader - said the Coalition should allow a conscience vote on the issue. Senator Bernardi said the longstanding policy was that "marriage is between a man and a woman." "We should expect that all frontbenchers will reflect party policy," he said. Our principle has always been that frontbenchers argue for changes in party policy through Cabinet while backbenchers are free to discuss any policy ideas they like. You can't have it both ways. Prime Minister Tony Abbott, asked whether he would allow a conscience vote , said the issue would be dealt with by the Coalition party room "in the normal way." Deputy Labor Leader Tanya Plibersek said the defeat of the ACT's same-sex marriage laws showed it was up to the Federal Parliament to legislate it. She will introduce a Private Member's Bill next year to "make it possible for same-sex couples who love each other to marry," she said. Ms Plibersek said she would like a Liberal or National party member to co-sponsor the bill, and said it would be "wonderful" if Mr Turnbull put his name to it.