Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull will not attend this year's Sydney gay and lesbian Mardi Gras parade, saying he has "other matters" to attend to interstate.
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The Mardi Gras' governing body last year passed a motion declaring Mr Turnbull was not welcome at the annual parade, but overturned it following internal division.
Opposition to the Prime Minister's attendance stemmed from his backing of a national plebiscite on same-sex marriage, which the majority of the gay and lesbian community opposes in favour of a free parliamentary vote on the issue.
Along with his wife Lucy, Mr Turnbull has been a regular attendee of the Mardi Gras parade, including last year when he became the first sitting prime minister to attend the celebration.
But Mr Turnbull said on Thursday he had interstate business this weekend that would preclude his attendance.
"I go most years, I'm not going this year, I'll be interstate on other matters," he said. "But Lucy and I have been strong supporters of Mardi Gras and the major sponsoring organisations for many, many years.
He told Sydney radio station WSFM he believed he was still invited, but had "some other things" to do on the day. "It's always a great event," he added.
The Mardi Gras parade takes place in Mr Turnbull's Sydney electorate of Wentworth. Fairfax Media has confirmed that Opposition Leader Bill Shorten will attend.
Same-sex marriage continues to be a major internal difficulty within the Coalition, which took the policy of a plebiscite to the last election but was unable to get the enabling legislation through the Senate after it was blocked by Labor, the Greens and others.
Conservatives want to stick with the plebiscite policy, but a small number of backbenchers are understood to be agitating for a free parliamentary vote on the issue, which would likely see same-sex marriage become law.
One supportive MP told Fairfax Media this week the issue was "still alive" and "still pumping", following a cross-party Senate report that reached a consensus view on how the Marriage Act could be amended to allow for same-sex marriage. Work could begin on a cross-party bill within weeks.
Comment has been sought from Mardi Gras organisers.
