Christian Democratic Party leader Fred Nile has told his parliamentary colleagues that he will introduce a two-year sunset clause to Zoe’s Law.
If passed, Zoe’s Law would provide legal personhood status to foetuses over 20 weeks old. It would allow NSW criminal law to prosecute a person for causing harm to a foetus while still being carried by its mother.
The bill has caused widespread concern about the effects of foetal personhood on abortion law in NSW.
The bill was introduced in 2013 and passed through lower house later that year.
The bill is now due to be debated in the NSW upper house. It is widely believed that the bill does not have enough votes to be passed. With only one sitting week left in this parliamentary year, it has been unclear in recent weeks whether the bill will be put before parliament at all.
“There is much speculation about the numbers in the legislative council on this bill, but the reality is I don’t think we will know until debate begins, if it is indeed ever brought to debate,” Greens MLC Dr Mehreen Faruqi MLC told Women’s Agenda.
Yesterday Nile told MPs in the upper house that he would introduce a sunset clause on the bill. The amendment means the bill will be repealed two years from when it is first enacted.
The clause is designed to protect against any unforeseen consequences of the legislation. It has been speculated that Nile included the amendment in order to sway MPs who are still undecided on whether they will vote in favour of the bill.
Greens MLC Dr Mehreen Faruqi said the sunset clause is a “two year experiment”.
“Rev Fred Nile’s amendments are deeply offensive and would subject women to an appalling two year experiment. This amendment has no effect at all on the worst aspects of the Bill,” Faruqi said.
“To subject women to a trial to take away their rights and autonomy is unacceptable.”
Women’s Electoral Lobby spokesperson Melanie Fernandez also said it would be dangerous to allow the bill to have a trial period.
“We know there have been negative consequences arising from introducing foetal personhood legislation in other jurisdictions. We don’t want to see our government testing this legislation on the lives of women in NSW,” she told Women’s Agenda.
If the amended bill is not debated in parliament this week, it will lapse and will have to be re-introduced when parliament reconvenes next year.
“The foetal personhood law is in a state of flux. Essentially there is one, maybe two weeks left of parliament before the state election in March 2015, after which this bill will lapse,” Faruqi told Women’s Agenda.
Chris Spence, the MP who introduced the bill, will be retired from parliament by the time the bill would be re-introduced. Spence is leaving parliament following an investigation by the ICAC this year.