ACT Leader and MP for Epsom David Seymour welcomes the passing of the Abortion Legislation Act tonight in Parliament.

“Abortion reform in New Zealand was long overdue and this legislation is a crucial step forward for personal freedom in New Zealand,” says David Seymour.

“This change is about a woman’s right to choose and personal choice should never be a crime. Abortion should never have been in the Crimes Act.”

“For over 40 years our laws have not reduced abortion, but they have led to stigma, inequity, and subterfuge.”

“Women in New Zealand have faced the stigma that criminalisation has placed around abortions, have faced hurdles to access abortion services in rural areas, and were forced to invent a fiction that they are mentally unstable to access healthcare.”

“Supporting this reform was the right thing to do, however, we cannot expand freedom by giving one right while taking another away at the same time. It would have been a mistake to legalise abortion while criminalising speech”

“That is why I introduced an amendment to remove safe areas. I, and a majority of my colleagues, agreed with the Law Commission’s advice that current laws deal adequately with intimidating behaviour around abortion clinics and that there is no justification for safe areas.

“I implore the New Zealand Police to uphold these existing laws.”

“This legislation will bring a new honesty and clarity to abortion law in New Zealand. It will make us a more humane, understanding society.

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