More Doubts About Foetal Images Regulation

Wayne Berry - Member for Ginninderra

Media Statement - 5 October 1999

More embarrassment has emerged for the Liberal ACT Government and in particular Ministers Humphries and Smyth who forced the now discredited foetal images regulations though the ACT Assembly, Wayne Berry MLA said today.

"Humphries and Smyth first pushed their moral views over the unanimous views of an independent panel of health experts when they made regulations requiring doctors to provide foetal images at various stages of development to women who have decided to terminate a pregnancy.

The influential Scrutiny of Bills Committee has raised legal doubts about the power of these anti choice ministers to make the misleading regulations in the first place

The Committee said:

• "On the basis that this regulation might be beyond the scope of (or ultra vires) the power in section 16 of the Act, it could be argued that this instrument contains matter which should properly be dealt with in an Act..."

"Firstly the Department of Health exposed the Regulations as inaccurate and misleading and now their legal standing is in doubt.

"The High Court has struck down subordinate laws, which attempt to extend the scope of the primary legislation. This possibility should not be invited merely because it suits the moral values of the Ministers Humphries and Smyth.

"The Health Regulation (Maternal Health Information) Act specifically limits the provision of the information to the discretion of the advisory panel of experts established by the legislation. It is not the role of Ministers to extend the scope of the law by regulations to suit their moral whim.

"It is about time that Humphries and Smyth and the rest of the Liberals gave up their over zealous clamour to restrict a woman's access to abortion and left it to the experts who said no to foetal pictures," Mr Berry concluded.