Page 4391 - Week 15 - Tuesday, 19 November 1991
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But there are serious questions which need to be answered at every point along that spectrum. Those questions relate to the human rights of the people involved; their civil liberties; the ethics involved, and there are ethical questions in all of this debate on euthanasia; also the professional judgment and the professional practice of people who might be asked to take responsibility for this action.
Mr Deputy Speaker, it is my party's view that all of this needs to be debated. Mr Humphries constantly refers to a proposal. There is no proposal that I am aware of.
Mr Humphries: There is a policy.
MS FOLLETT: There is indeed a policy, Mr Humphries; but there is no proposal. As I have said, we are not currently preparing legislation; nor will we, until that process of consultation has taken place. We have debated informally amongst our Labor members how that debate might best be progressed.
Some of the ways that we have come up with include a reference to the Community Law Reform Committee - a committee which has done very good work on some other difficult issues, and which I am quite sure would make a sensible and balanced contribution to the debate on euthanasia. It might also be appropriate in the next Assembly for the Social Policy Committee to undertake a reference on this issue. I realise that they are hardly in a position, at this point, to undertake such a reference. But, given that they have undertaken the consideration of some difficult issues and consulted widely with the community, I think that our own Assembly committee system might be a good one to use in progressing this debate.
I will close my remarks there. I would again like to say to Mr Moore that I appreciate his having put the issue before us today. As I say, my party does have a policy; but it is not one on which we will be taking precipitate action. I do regret that the Canberra Times editorial might have unnecessarily alarmed people into thinking that precipitate action was about to be taken. We will take action in the light of full community consultation on this matter, as on any other important issue.
DR KINLOCH (4.02): I also thank Mr Moore for creating the opportunity for us to speak on the subject of euthanasia. I welcome also the unique nature of the MPI. It is not a motion; it is not a sentence; it is not a statement. I think we could well do this on other matters. I welcome the other contributions being made to this debate. It seems to me that they are being made thoughtfully and carefully and out of due consideration of the difficulty of this matter. I agree very much with everyone who has spoken about the need for an informed public debate - and let us stress "informed".
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