Election 2022: Opposition reticent on abortion after 2019 backlash

Anthony Albanese will not commit to making abortion services widely available in Australia’s public hospitals if he becomes prime minister.

Labor leader Anthony Albanese. Picture: Steve Pohlner

Anthony Albanese will not commit to making abortion services widely available in Australia’s public hospitals if he becomes prime minister, after the policy hurt Labor in marginal seats during the 2019 election campaign.

Under the 2019 policy, cham­pioned by Tanya Plibersek, public hospital systems would be ­required to offer abortion services as part of their commonwealth funding arrangement.

While well supported in progressive seats, the plan to leverage funding agreements to push states into improving access to abortion became a sleeper issue in more culturally diverse seats, particularly in Sydney’s west.

Asked if the policy had been scuppered or would be taken to the poll, a party spokesman said: “Labor’s health policies will be announced before the election and they will not be the same as those taken to the election in 2019.”

Cherish Life targeted 25 seats with ads and flyers saying “more babies would die under a Bill Shorten Labor government”.

The pro-life lobby’s campaign hit hard in the outer-western Sydney seat of Macquarie, held by Labor MP Susan Templeman, a former Family Planning NSW board member. Macquarie is now Australia’s most marginal electorate, still held by Ms Templeman on a razor-thin 0.2 per cent.

Cherish Life executive director Teeshan Johnson said the campaign against Labor’s policy was successful and claimed “five scalps” in the 25 target seats – Bass, Braddon, Herbert, Lindsay, Longman. “If they were to come out with that same policy, it would be a red flag before us. We do not tolerate parties that take a target to the unborn,” she said.

But Labor women’s lobby Emily’s List has urged the ALP to recommit to the policy before the election, saying a lack of services was impacting women’s choices.

“It is a really important policy, especially in Tasmania and Queensland, where there is a ­significant concern about accessibility,” co-convener Leigh Svendsen said. “(Surgical) abortion services were unavailable in Tasmania during the pandemic and ability to fly interstate was restricted. Even though (abortion) has been decriminalised, it does not mean it is technically available.”

Family planning organisation Marie Stopes says just 5 to 10 per cent of terminations are done in public hospitals. “We would support any policy that allows universal healthcare access,” managing director Jamal Hakim said.