It seems both have turned on the Coalition on the issue of same-sex marriage.

Poll after poll show that public opinion is now in favour of allowing gay couples to wed, and that support is growing among older Australians.

For conservative members of the Liberal and National parties, the writing should well and truly be on the wall now that even Catholic countries like Ireland have shifted.

Shortly after the news of moves for a cross-party bill in federal parliament, Tasmanian Senator Eric Abetz spectacularly re-entered the political fray, saying that same-sex marriage was not an inevitability, and warning of a "Pandora's Box" of consequences.

It was a message to members of his own party room as much as the general public that the Right wing of Liberal Party do not want the bill brought before Parliament, and will fight tooth and nail against it.

Senator Abetz complained that the media has lost its objectivity on the issue, and said journalists ignored parts of the world where same-sex marriage was either not on the agenda or had been reversed.

It was a fair point, but look how far whingeing about the media got former Prime Minister Julia Gillard.

Senator Abetz also raised the point that we are living in the "Asian century", which seems spurious, given that homosexuality is still illegal in parts of our region.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott has indicated that he does not yet want the party room to debate having a conscience vote on the issue, which seems to fly in the face of what he said before the last election.

Closer to home, Bass MHR Andrew Nikolic says the bill should not trump the government's existing legislative agenda of the economy and national security.

Fair enough, but there are plenty of sitting weeks left in the year, and currently on the Senate's agenda are inquiries into the imaginary evils of wind farms and halal certification.

The strategy, in short is to play for time, and to not be "distracted" by the issue.

But it's like trying to not be distracted by a toothache.

The longer that same-sex marriage is pushed forward, the louder the proponents will become, and the more the government will look obstinate and out of touch.

Tellingly, even an editorial in The Australian has called for the Liberal Party to deal with same-sex marriage, meaning those in favour of waiting it out are running out of friends.

And a conscience vote within the Liberal Party does not mean that the bill's passage through Parliament is a fait accompli, given that there are Labor MPs, such as Tasmanian Senator Helen Polley, who are against it.

If the bill was to fail to win the support of one or both houses of Parliament, it would allow Mr Abbott to push the issue off the agenda until at least the next election.

It would also allow those who have campaigned against it to have their say, and to avoid any accusations of having "sold out" their constituencies on the issue.

Because, like King Canute, Mr Abbott cannot hold back the tide.