[Greens-Media] Pregnancy hotline failure

[Lawson, Damien (Sen K. Nettle)]

30.04.07

Pregnancy hotline failure

Greens Senator Kerry Nettle criticised the government's pregnancy
counselling hotline to be launched tomorrow as a missed opportunity. 

"The government should be ensuring that all women can access a genuine
all-options pregnancy counselling service," Senator Nettle said.

"But the federal government has not set up this pregnancy counselling
hotline with the best interests of Australian women at heart."

"The announcement to establish this pregnancy counselling hotline came
from a petulant Health Minister Tony Abbott that had just lost the vote
on RU486.

"The hotline has been designed to cater for concerns of the conservative
Christian Right rather than the needs of Australian women.

"The female parliamentarians that led the RU486 campaign are now
focussed on pregnancy counselling.

"The private members bill that I am co-sponsoring with women from other
parties has come about because of the concerns we have about the lack of
transparency in advertising by pregnancy counselling services.

"The launch of the government's pregnancy counselling hotline does not
allay these concerns but rather spurs me and other pro-choice women on
to ensuring that we have transparency in advertising by pregnancy
counselling services."

The private members bill co-sponsored by Senator Nettle is due to be
debated this year.  

Contact - Damien Lawson 0419 253 342



Office of Greens Senator Kerry Nettle
Tel: 02 9690 2038 Fax: 9690 2041
www.kerrynettle.org.au