Page 2919 - Week 09 - Thursday, 18 September 2014
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of euthanasia, that we are a competent parliament and that residents of the ACT should not be treated as second-class citizens. I commend the motion to the Assembly.
MS GALLAGHER (Molonglo—Chief Minister, Minister for Health, Minister for Higher Education and Minister for Regional Development) (11.27): I thank Mr Rattenbury for the motion in the Assembly today. It certainly adds to past statements the government has made about our view that discussions about the end of life need to happen more frequently and freely. We have to set out to create a more open culture where people feel able to talk about death and dying, both in the health profession and across the community.
I also acknowledge Ms Porter’s work in this area, particularly the experience she brings from her own personal experience from her time as a nurse and also the work she has done studying issues of dying with dignity, both here and overseas.
Today this issue is really one of territory rights and not of the merits for or against euthanasia. This matter has been raised in the media over the last week as the commonwealth legal and constitutional affairs legislation committee is inquiring into the Medical Services (Dying with Dignity) Bill 2014. On behalf of the ACT government, I made a submission to this inquiry. Minister Rattenbury also made a submission. Our submissions are two of 663 submissions. I think it would be fair to say the views expressed by different peak bodies, medical professionals and individuals are very diverse, as is expected and is known when we deal with the issue of euthanasia and when dying with dignity and all the issues that surround it are raised.
The issue, coming back to this morning’s debate, is really one of territory rights. What my submission and this motion draw attention to in this arena is that the ACT and the Northern Territory have been heavily marginalised. While we can discuss euthanasia in this parliament, we are expressly prevented from legislating on it.
Our community, particularly those who have experience either of losing a family member or who are indeed terminally ill themselves, is disempowered because this parliament does not have state rights on this issue. This is not because of a constitutional requirement. It is a hangover from a reactionary commonwealth which 17 years ago used a strategy to prevent euthanasia legislation in the territories. After moving to quash the Northern Territory euthanasia legislation of 1995 the commonwealth amended the ACT self-government act in 1997 to explicitly ban this Assembly passing laws pertaining to euthanasia. Kevin Andrews was the sponsor of the bill. He argued at the time that the Northern Territory legislation was passed by a small territory, with the population of a suburban municipality in Melbourne or Sydney, by one vote, without any house of review. We have heard similar views expressed here over other reforming legislation.
Insofar as the states not having yet passed euthanasia laws is concerned, this strategy has achieved its goal but for us the restriction remains undemocratic and unjust, just as it was when introduced. The commonwealth created a differential democratic right between citizens in the states and citizens in the territories when legislating in this way. Therefore, in my submission to this inquiry I have argued for the repeal of this legislation. This would ensure that all Australians are treated equally before their parliaments when considering legislation around euthanasia or assisted suicide.
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