Scrapping public funding for both sides of the same-sex marriage plebiscite would be a "necessary step" to win Labor's support, but shadow attorney-general Mark Dreyfus says it won't be sufficient to see enabling legislation go through Parliament.
Ahead of talks with Attorney-General George Brandis and Special Minister of State Scott Ryan in Brisbane on Monday, Mr Dreyfus said LGBTI advocates were prepared to wait for changes to the Marriage Act in order to avoid a potentially divisive plebiscite campaign.
Mr Dreyfus told ABC radio right-wing Coalition MPs would not allow Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to make any changes to plans to give both the "yes" and "no" campaigns $7.5 million for advertising ahead of the planned February plebiscite, making Monday's meeting unlikely to bring about Labor support for the national vote.
"That would be a necessary step but it certainly wouldn't be sufficient," Mr Dreyfus said.
"I don't think Senator Brandis or Mr Turnbull are in any position to offer that because just today we've had Barnaby Joyce insisting that there won't be changes, we've had George Christensen insisting that in particular there won't be changes on the public funding, we've had Eric Abetz insisting the same thing."
His comments come as Senator Brandis has warned same-sex couples could be left waiting until the 2020s to get married if Labor blocks the plebiscite for next year.
Mr Dreyfus said government MPs had not come to terms with how damaging and painful a plebiscite campaign could be for LGBTI Australians.
The Greens and key crossbench senators have indicated they won't vote for the plebiscite, leaving the government's plans scuttled without Labor's support.
"The whole essence of the 'no' campaign is going to be one which says 'treat some of our citizens as less than equal' and its implicit that there will be offensive given," Mr Dreyfus said.
"I've had dozens and dozens of emails just in the last couple of days from the LGBTI community urging that there be no plebiscite, urging Labor to hold the line saying this is a harmful, divisive plebiscite that they don't want, and they are prepared to wait some time for that vote in the Parliament that will bring marriage equality about."
He accused conservatives in the Liberal Party of planning the plebiscite as a ruse and delaying tactic.
"Let's not make any mistake here. We want marriage equality, we think a free vote is the fastest, least expensive and least harmful way to achieve that," Mr Dreyfus said.
"If the plebiscite does not happen then we'll be back to where we were in 2015, with calls for a free vote in the Parliament and those calls are going to increase."
