Heated abortion debate
MPs hear Cairns views
PUBLIC hearings ahead of voting on legislation to remove abortion from the Queensland criminal code heard passionate arguments from both sides of the debate in Cairns yesterday.
The Termination of Pregnancy Bill aims to legally define unwanted pregnancies as a health issue and not one of criminality when Parliament votes on the bill next month.
At the Cairns committee hearing, Dr Tim Coyle cited the trade in foetal body parts on the US black market.
Dr Coyle said 95 per cent of Queensland abortions were for “social reasons” and he thought the abortion trade in Cairns to be quite “lucrative”.
“This law is a brutal law and is unnecessary. I don’t support abortion at all,” he said.
Dr Heather McNamee of the Cairns Sexual Health Clinic said she thought Dr Coyle’s submission irrelevant to Australia.
“What he forgets is one in three Queensland women have had an abortion. So when he is making these claims … he forgets about the impact of the statements he makes,” he said.
Dr McNamee said she didn’t know where Mr Coyle’s data came from as most abortions she performed showed up as a longer consultation on the Medicare form.
“Yes, the majority of abortions are done under 12 weeks and yes the majority are not for a strict medical indication. They are for psyco-social reasons, he leaves off the ‘psyco’ bit and leaves off the woman’s wellbeing,” she said.
Dr McNamee said she was hopeful the Bill had the numbers to get across the line despite members of Katter’s Australian Party indicating this week they would not support the bill.
“Even with losing a couple of the Labor MPs it will still pass,” she said.