Kevin Rudd has denied hiding his true beliefs about same-sex marriage while he was prime minister, saying his current stance was the result of a "personal journey." Mr Rudd, who announced he had changed his position on same-sex marriage in a lengthy blog post on Monday night, rebuffed suggestions that it was more convenient for him to publicise his view as a backbencher, rather than party leader. He drew on Shakespeare to illustrate his sincerity: "To thine own self be true." "As your view evolves and changes . . . when it reaches conclusion that's when you should put it in a the public domain," he said. While same-sex marriage advocates have welcomed Mr Rudd's change of heart, others such as shadow attorney-general George Brandis have questioned his motivations. "This is all about Kevin Rudd continuing to dance this dance in front of the media for as long as he possible can, because the Rudd supporters in federal caucus have not given up hope," Senator Brandis told Sky News. Mr Rudd said he had been approached about the issue by many people in the community in the past 12 months, including same-sex couples asking, "why can't we get married?" "It's been quite pervasive on the ground," he said. He also called on Tony Abbott to "have the decency" to give the Coalition a conscience vote on same-sex marriage, saying that if the Opposition Leader will not allow it, Australia should look at a referendum to resolve the issue. In his blog, Mr Rudd declared he agreed that same-sex couples should be allowed to wed so long as churches and religious institutions don't have to marry them. When asked about Prime Minister Julia Gillard's stance on the issue, Mr Rudd told reporters in Brisbane on Tuesday: "I'm sure in the case of the Prime Minister, she has arrived at her position of opposition to same-sex marriage as a product of her own conscience and her own deliberations." On Tuesday, Ms Gillard gave no indication that she was reconsidering her position against same-sex marriage, but still called on Mr Abbott to allow a conscience vote. "What I've done as Prime Minister is make sure that for the Labor Party that there is a conscience vote," she told reporters in Melbourne. Obviously individual Labor members, including Kevin Rudd, will use that freedom to reflect deeply and to form their own views about same-sex marriage. Ms Gillard said that the problem in federal parliament was that Coalition MPs did not have a free vote. "When you look round the world and at those nations that have changed their laws and embraced same-sex marriage, a hallmark of those nations has been that conservative leaders have given their members a conscience vote," she said. So the step forward that we need to see here is that Mr Abbott does what I have already done for the Labor Party. Previously, Mr Rudd had been a staunch opponent to gay marriage and as recently as September 2012 voted against legalising same-sex marriage in a parliamentary vote which lost 98-42. But he insisted he had a change of heart and wanted to let the Australian public know his new stance before further debate on the issue in parliament. "If you can't be grown up enough in the Australian national political debate . . . and reach an amended or changed position, then frankly you shouldn't be in national political life," Mr Rudd said. This has been something of a personal journey for me. He said he had waited to declare his support on the issue until after the budget. "For me to have said anything prior to the budget would have been wrong," Mr Rudd said. So I've waited frankly for a bit of a lull. In his blog, Mr Rudd wrote his change of thinking had been precipitated by a recent conversation with a friend and former colleague, who came out as gay. Rudd 'at it again' But the opposition has questioned Mr Rudd's motivations. His move has not impressed Senator Brandis, who said it showed "Kevin Rudd is at it again." "It's not about same-sex marriage . . . what it tells you is that Kevin Rudd has not given up," he said. Mr Abbott said that people were entitled to change their minds. "Kevin certainly changed his mind in spectacular fashion," he told 2dayFM on Tuesday. But unlike Senator Brandis, Mr Abbott said: "I would try not to be cynical about something like this." The Opposition Leader later told reporters in Bundamba, Queensland, that he himself had not changed his mind on the same-sex marriage issue. When asked if he would allow a conscience vote, Mr Abbott did not respond directly. "The policy that we took into the last election is that we support the existing Marriage Act," he said. My party room was strongly of the view that we were not going to say one thing before an election and do the opposition after an election. The commitment that I've been giving to the Australian people is that there will be no surprises and no excuses under a Coalition government. Last month, Mr Abbott appeared to open the door on his conscience vote stance when he said it would be a matter for the Coalition party room after the September election. New vote Mr Bandt's bill is due to be debated in the Federation Chamber at Parliament House next Monday. As yet there is no vote confirmed for June 6. Same-sex marriage advocates applaud move Australian Marriage Equality national director Rodney Croome says if Mr Rudd can show the maturity and integrity to compassionately evolve on this issue, so can Ms Gillard and Mr Abbott. Kevin Rudd is a former prime minister. When you have someone like Kevin come forward, I think it adds a great deal of momentum to the debate. Support for change may be growing Schools Education Minister Peter Garrett, who backs same-sex marriage, told Sky News: "People are entitled to change their minds." According to gay marriage campaigners, Mr Rudd told them as far back as December 2011 that if he was prime minister, same-sex marriage would be law. Fairfax Media reported the conversation took place at a party held by gay marriage lobbyists during the last Labor Party national conference and it included Mr Rudd, then the minister for foreign affairs, the doctor Kerryn Phelps, her partner Jackie Stricker, and another campaigner, Geoff Thomas. "He [Mr Rudd] absolutely said that if he was prime minister it [gay marriage] would have gone through," Ms Stricker said. We couldn't believe how open and forthright he was. Mr Rudd reportedly also said that Ms Gillard had previously spoken in support of same-sex marriage when she was a member of his cabinet. When Fairfax Media reported the incident last July, Mr Rudd denied the conversation took place.