Abortion Legislation Act 2020
[13][16] According to media reports, the ruling Labour Party and its coalition partner New Zealand First conducted months of negotiations on the proposed Abortion Legislation Bill.
New Zealand First Member of Parliament and Minister of Children Tracey Martin, a supporter of abortion reform, played an active role in the negotiations.
On 6 August 2019, NZ First leader and Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters surprised both Martin and Labour by demanding a binding referendum on the Abortion Legislation Bill.
[17][18][19][20] The opposition National Party leader Simon Bridges voiced his support for abortion reform but stated that more safeguards were needed.
[21] Opposition National MP Amy Adams criticized NZ First's call for a referendum, saying that the matter should be decided by Parliament.
[27] By 9 October 2019, the Abortion Legislation Committee had received 25,000 written submissions from a range of legal and medical experts, religious groups, national organisations and ordinary people sharing personal experiences including Dr Alison Knowles, the Mental Health Foundation, and Family First.
[29][30][31] In addition, Loheni published a minority report criticizing the bill for what she regarded as a lack of safeguards on foetal abnormalities and late-term abortions.
ACT New Zealand leader David Seymour supported the Select Committee's recommendations but argued that safe zones infringed on freedom of expression.
[32][33] Select Committee member Agnes Loheni, who was opposed to the legislation, proposed a supplementary order paper which would return the post 20 week criteria for abortion to where it currently stands under the Crimes Act.
In addition, Parliament considered but rejected several amendments including: On 18 March, parliamentarians voted against holding a referendum on the abortion law changes by margin of 100 to 19.
Green MP Marama Davidson attempted to reverse David Seymour's amendment eliminating safe zones around abortion clinics but MPs voted by a margin 77 to 43 against it.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary to the Justice Minister, Jan Logie, hailed the bill's passage as a victory for women having the freedom to make decisions about having a child.
[47][48][49][4] During the final reading, Labour List MP Kieran McAnulty spoke about his Catholic faith and being adopted as a child but supported women's reproductive rights.
Labour MP Marja Lubeck said that abortion was not a decision that women made lightly, describing the previous legislation as "archaic.
National MP Agnes Loheni, a member of the Abortion Legislation Committee, described the bill as an "attack on our humanity."
Fellow National MP Andrew Bayly expressed concerns that the bill would allow minors to seek abortions without the knowledge of their parents and guardians.
National MP Chris Penk disputed assertions that the previous abortion legislation criminalised women and claimed that the new bill would deny unborn children the right of protection under the law.
