Jacinda Ardern Will Have To Reject Law Commission Abortion Options
Media Release 28 October 2018
Family First NZ says that the Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will have to reject all three options put forward by the Law Commission on abortion laws if she is to keep her pre-election promise.
At the Newstalk ZB’s Leaders Breakfast just before the election, Jacinda Ardern said:
“Yes I think abortion should come out of the Crimes Act, that does not mean for a moment that I am proposing what has been claimed, that you should be able to have on-demand abortion to birth. No that is absolutely not what I am saying. We of course must regulate… We have time periods already set out in the law and I am not proposing changes to that. I am proposing it comes out of the Crimes Act.”
“To keep to her election promise, Ms Ardern will immediately have to reject Model A – which allows abortion on-demand up to birth – being lobbied for by radical abortion pressure group ALRANZ and Family Planning. But she’ll also have to reject Model C which allows abortion on-demand to 22 weeks and only loosely restricted past that point, and Model B which allows abortion with only loose restrictions up to birth. Each one of these models tosses out the current law’s limit in the Crimes Act on abortions past 20 weeks, with Model A doing the exact opposite of what Ms Ardern said she wouldn’t do – allowing on-demand abortion to birth,” says Bob McCoskrie, National Director of Family First NZ.
In the independent polling of 1,013 NZ’ers by Curia Market Research released in January this year, just 9% support the current legal limit for an abortion of 20 weeks. Only 4% believe it should be later than 20 weeks, including up to birth. 50% think the time limit should be shorter than the current 20 weeks, and a further 36% were unsure. Of those who did pick a time limit, 15 weeks was the median choice.
Significantly, 56% of women think the time limit should be less than the current 20 weeks. And incredibly, 53% of those who generally support abortion think the time limit should be less than the current 20 weeks – 29% of abortion supporters say 10 weeks or less.
“If abortions are allowed on demand after 20 weeks, Jacinda Ardern will have broken her promise. Any changes would potentially pave the way for late term abortions, aborting children on the basis of their gender, aborting those with disabilities e.g. Down’s syndrome, and possibly even partial-birth abortions. The concerns of groups like Saving Downs and groups opposing sex-selection abortions will be proved justified, but that is the effect of removing abortion from the Crimes Act.”
AUDIO:
ENDS
