NewsHub 13 December 2017
A Bill on legalising euthanasia has passed its first reading after gaining majority support in Parliament through a conscience vote.
Seventy-six MPs voted in favour and 44 voted against.
It will now pass to the justice select committee and be open to public submissions.
ACT MP David Seymour’s End of Life Choices Bill seeks to give people those suffering a terminal illness or a grievous or incurable medical condition the option to request medically assisted death.
New Zealand First has supported the bill under the provision that a nationwide referendum is held on the issue.
NZ First MP Tracey Martin said: “Not a single one of us is smarter than the people who placed us here, not a single one of us has more of a conscience or less of a conscience than the people who voted us here. This issue should go to them, this is too big an issue for this House to decide.”
National leader Bill English opposed the Bill, saying it’s not creating a medical procedure but “an exemption from the criminal law against killing for a certain group”.
“I don’t think anyone can in their heart of hearts believe that this bill will make life safer for the disabled, that it’ll make our community more warmly embracing of our aging population. Who pretends that?”
Media Release 14 December 2017
Family First NZ is labelling calls by the Coroner – who investigated the death of Moko Rangitoheriri – that all children should be registered from birth and monitored until the age of 5 as ‘totalitarian’, paranoid, naïve, and a waste of time and resources. A similar proposal was made in 2006 by the Children’s Commissioner to track children from birth, and rightly rejected.
“The Coroner rightly wants all children to be safe, nurtured, educated and healthy, but monitoring every child that is born is an extreme example of the nanny state. The research has already been done on the risk factors for a child. The issue is whether we are willing to accept them, and then tackle them. Senior social workers correctly say that widening the safety-net as a ‘silver bullet’ is a naïve response that has the potential to destabilise families and create an overburdened system that fails to respond appropriately to at-risk families,” says Bob McCoskrie, National Director of Family First NZ.
“The other concern is about how far this ‘check’ invades into the choices and privacy of good families. Who gets to decide what is best for children? It will be the state and the morass of bureaucracy that is going to surround this type of initiative. The government would be the third parent in every family. It is a licence for ‘professionals’ to interfere in families’ lives when there is no crime and no abuse.”
A similar proposal in Scotland last year was dismissed because it risked breaching important regulations protecting privacy and confidentiality and could result in disproportionate interference with the right to a family and private life.
“This proposal would fundamentally alter the relationship between the family and the state. It gives the state more power at the expense of good parents and families who should be left alone and the sooner it is abandoned the better,” says Mr McCoskrie.
“This proposal will simply distract our frontline services from targeting and monitoring at-risk children and rotten parents, which is where the real focus should be.” ENDS
Stuff co.nz 11 December 2017 Family First Comment: Shocking! “Earlier this year a form issued by the Children’s Commissioner in Brighton asked children to define their gender with 24 options including “demi-girl”, “bi-gender” and “tomboy”.”
Ten-year-old children are being asked by the British National Health Service (NHS) whether they are “comfortable with their gender” in official health surveys being completed in schools, it has emerged.
The form given to children in year six asks: “Do you feel the same inside as the gender you were born with? (feeling male or female).”
Youngsters are also asked to tick a box to confirm their true gender, with options of “boy”, “girl” and “other”.
Parents have been told that the NHS survey helps healthcare workers and teachers develop “better ways to understand and support” children who may be struggling with their identity, but it is not known whether individual children will be approached for further support based on their answers.
MPs and parents claimed the question was intrusive and could confuse children, amid growing concerns in some quarters over the inclusion of transgender issues in primary schools. The form, issued by the Lancashire Care NHS Foundation Trust, is thought to have been sent to schools across the county and it is unclear whether the initiative has been more widely adopted.
READ MORE: https://www.stuff.co.nz/world/europe/99754045/trans-survey-british-school-children-asked-to-confirm-their-true-gender
Media Release 13 December 2017
In response to ACT MP David Seymour’s euthanasia bill passing it’s 1st Reading tonight, Family First NZ is immediately launching a strong nationwide campaign to stop the flawed and dangerous bill.
Family First will be releasing a 16-page resource this week to help families and organisations flood the Select Committee with submissions opposing the law.
“Safe euthanasia is a myth. Euthanasia will remove the ‘choice’ of many vulnerable people, and fails the public safety test. Most disturbingly, promotion of assisted suicide is a message that will be heard not just by those with a terminal illness but also by anyone tempted to think he or she can no longer cope with their suffering – whatever the nature of that suffering. This is the real risk to young and to vulnerable people, the disabled and elderly people if NZ follows the path of promoting – and allowing – assisted suicide,” says Bob McCoskrie, National Director of Family First NZ.
The recent parliamentary inquiry sounded a clear warning that changing the law on assisted suicide could be seen as normalising suicide, and an overwhelming 80% of the 21,000+ submitters – in an extensive and lengthy inquiry – have rejected calls for euthanasia.
National NO! Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi, Maggie Barry, Andrew Bayly, David Bennett, Simon Bridges, Simeon Brown, Gerry Brownlee, David Carter, Judith Collins, Jacqui Dean, Sarah Dowie, Bill English, Chris Finlayson, Paul Goldsmith, Jo Hayes, Steven Joyce, Nuk Korako, Denise Lee, Melissa Lee, Tim Macindoe, Todd McClay, Ian McKelvie, Todd Muller, Alfred Ngaro, Simon O’Connor, Parmjeet Parmar, Chris Penk, Shane Reti, Alastair Scott, Nick Smith, Louise Upston, Nicky Wagner, Michael Woodhouse, Jonathan Young, Lawrence Yule
YES Amy Adams, Paula Bennett, Chris Bishop, Jonathan Coleman, Matt Doocey, Andrew Falloon, Nathan Guy, Harete Hipango, Brett Hudson, Nikki Kaye, Matt King, Barbara Kuriger, Mark Mitchell, Jami-Lee Ross, Scott Simpson, Stuart Smith, Erica Stanford, Anne Tolley, Tim van de Molen, Hamish Walker, Jian Yang
Labour NO! David Clark, Anahila Kanongata’a-Suisuiki, Damien O’Connor, Jenny Salesa, William Sio, Jamie Strange, Rino Tirikatene, Phil Twyford, Poto Williams
YES Kiri Allan, Ginny Andersen, Jacinda Ardern, Tamati Coffey, Liz Craig, Clare Curran, Kelvin Davis, Ruth Dyson, Paul Eagle, Kris Faafoi, Peeni Henare, Chris Hipkins, Raymond Huo, Willie Jackson, Iain Lees-Galloway, Andrew Little, Marja Lubeck, Jo Luxton, Nanaia Mahuta, Trevor Mallard, Kieran McAnulty, Stuart Nash, Greg O’Connor, David Parker, Willow-Jean Prime, Priyanca Radhakrishnan, Grant Robertson, Adrian Rurawhe, Deborah Russell, Carmel Sepuloni, Jan Tinetti, Louisa Wall, Angie Warren-Clark, Duncan Webb, Meka Whaitiri, Michael Wood, Megan Woods
NZ First YES (All MPs!) Darroch Ball, Shane Jones, Jenny Marcroft, Ron Mark, Tracey Martin, Clayton Mitchell, Mark Patterson, Winston Peters, Fletcher Tabuteau
Greens YES (All MPs!) Marama Davidson, Julie Anne Genter, Golriz Ghahraman, Gareth Hughes, Jan Logie, Eugenie Sage, James Shaw, Chloe Swarbrick
