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Independent New South Wales MP Alex Greenwich will introduce a bill to parliament this week that has the potential to overturn the state’s 119 year ban on abortions.
The move has been praised by pro-choice advocacy groups like Our Bodies Our Choice who have been campaigning for abortion decriminalisation.
“The majority of people in NSW support the right to access abortion care. It’s time our laws reflected that. Abortion is one of the most common medical procedures for women, but it’s expensive and almost entirely privatised,” said CEO Claire Pullen.
Access depends on your postcode and your purse and neither is acceptable. We can change that by changing these laws.
NSW remains the only state or territory in Australia where abortion is still categorised as a crime.
Under the Crimes Act 1900, it is punishable by a maximum penalty of 10 years imprisonment for women and the doctors who perform the procedure.
The new Reproductive Health Reform Bill 2019 will explicitly state that women can request an abortion from a registered doctor up to 22-weeks gestation.
Beyond 22-weeks, women will have to acquire the approval of two physicians, unless in emergency circumstances where the life of the woman or a second foetus is at risk.
Doctors that have a conscientious objection to abortion will have to disclose this to their patient and refer or transfer them to a doctor that has no objection.
"The fact that we are treating women's reproductive rights as they did in the early 1900s is deeply concerning," MP Alex Greenwich said.
"In 2019 it's time we changed that."
MPs from across the political divide, including National Trevor Khan and Labor's Penny Sharpe, have collaborated on the bill. It also has the support from Liberal Health Minister Brad Hazzard.
“Support strong” for abortion law reform but opposition still remains
The announcement of the bill comes just days after a pro-life billboard appeared on the side of the Pacific Highway at Lake Macquarie.
The billboard, which featured the words “A heart beats at four weeks” next to a pregnant woman’s stomach, was commissioned by pro-choice group Emily’s Voice.
Emily's Voice billboard spotted near Lake Macquarie. Source: Change.org
The company who owns the billboard, Ooh Media, originally responded to the outcry by saying that the billboard did not breach any of their advertising codes.
However, after a public backlash and a petition Ooh Media released an official statement saying that they had refunded the group’s payment and would be removing the billboard.
“Upon being made aware of concerns raised with the media placements of this advert by other media outlets, and respecting the fact that it could cause offence to a significant section of the community, the advert was put under the microscope of our review panel which deemed that the advert should be removed as it did not meet with our own guidelines,” the statement reads.
Emily's Voice CEO Paul O'Rourke released a statement saying that the group was disappointed in Ooh! Media’s decision and would be starting a petition challenging it.
Last month NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance was “appalled” that the same ad had appeared on the side of Newcastle buses and ordered they be removed immediately.
