FamilyVoice Australia sends press release saying gay marriage will confuse tradies FamilyVoice Australia's change.org petition has more than 400 signatures so far. Picture: change.org Source: Supplied Ros Phillips claims gay marriage in the ACT will confuse tradies. Picture: acl.org.au Source: Supplied IN A CASE of square peg, round hole syndrome, the national research officer of Australian Christian political party FamilyVoice Australia has defended herself against a press release that has left people scratching their heads across the country. Ros Phillips sent a press release yesterday claiming the recent change to same-sex marriage laws in the ACT would confuse tradies including plumbers, electricians and carpenters. The release included a diagram depicting appliances and plumbing equipment being joined together - like male and female sex organs. As any tradie can tell you, marriage has always been a joining of two opposites. You cannot properly unite two of the same," Mrs Phillips said. Ros Phillips claims these examples used in FamilyVoice Australia's presser are "light-hearted." By definition, marriage is a complementary, male-female union. Only that union has the potential to create and raise children with both male and female role models. It is not 'equality' to disregard reality. A same-sex couple will always be different from an opposite sex couple. Let's not confuse apprentice electricians, plumbers and carpenters in the ACT - lest the lights go out, the drains leak and the chairs collapse in the Legislative Assembly! Today, Ms Phillips told news.com.au the release was a "lighthearted way of pointing out the reality that marriage was always between a male and female." That's the only reason governments have any interest in registering marriages, because of their potential to create and raise the next generation. She also criticised the gay community for changing its stance in the last two decades on the issue of gay marriage. Just a couple of decades ago, the homosexual lobby wasn't interested in marriage, they said 'why would we be interested in such an archaic tradition?' Now they've changed and decided it's suddenly a good thing. Underneath it all they don't want marriage, they want to change it. The diagram used by FamilyVoice Australia. Picture: Facebook/FamilyVoice Australia Source: Supplied She scoffed at the idea the press release could be seen by some as offensive. Since most people have taken it as a lighthearted press release, no I don't think it could be seen as offensive. It's true, electricians and plumbers use male and female parts to make joints, it's been around for a very long time. This week, a decision to legalise same-sex marriage in Canberra was approved by the ACT Legislative Assembly. The Abbott Government has already lodged legal proceedings in the High Court to challenge the decision, but the ACT has confirmed it will fight for the law to be upheld. "No one can be confident about what the High Court will decide, but I'm very confident that our Act is soundly based and has the potential to give us strong legal arguments to put to the court," ACT Attorney-General Simon Corbell said. The commonwealth believes the ACT Marriage Equality (Same-Sex) Act 2013 is directly inconsistent with the Commonwealth Marriage Act 1961. "We will also continue to work with the ACT government to ensure its law is as robust as possible, which may involve further amendments," said Australian Marriage Equality national director Rodney Croome.