SHANE Rattenbury is celebrating a vote in the Legislative Assembly forcing the Speaker, the Liberals’ Vicki Dunne, to write to her colleagues on the big hill.
“Following successful action from the ACT Greens, the Speaker of the ACT Legislative Assembly will write to the Federal Government calling on it to repeal the ‘Andrews Act’, which prevents the ACT from legislating to establish a euthanasia scheme. The Assembly passed the Greens’ resolution with the support of the Labor party. The Liberal Party opposed it,” Shane said.
“The Assembly has made a clear statement to the Federal Parliament that it is time that to repeal this out-of-date restriction – which was imposed for purely political purposes – and give the people of Canberra the same rights as other Australians,” said ACT Greens MLA, Shane Rattenbury.
“The people of the ACT should have the same rights as other citizens. The Commonwealth restriction discriminates against the Territories and treats the people of the ACT as second class citizens.
“Legalising voluntary euthanasia in the ACT would, of course, involve extensive community consultation, input from experts and no doubt vigorous debate in the Assembly – all of the parliamentary and community engagement mechanisms that are appropriate for such an important change. At the moment we are not even permitted to undertake this process,” said Mr Rattenbury.
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