Today in Victoria: Guy won’t support euthanasia vote

Matthew Guy makes his position on vote clear, how Labor ruined gay marriage, and level crossing deaths | COMMENT

Matthew Guy on legalising euthanasia: “I do not support it, I will not support it, I’ve never supported it”. Picture: Nicole Garmston

Victorian Liberal leader Matthew Guy has today made clear that he will not personally support any vote on legalising euthanasia.

This is not a new position but the timing is important.

Guy said, however, that he would back a conscience vote in the Victorian Parliament.

“Any approach from the opposition on euthanasia will be a conscience vote,’’ he said.

“I’ve already made it clear that I do not support it, I will not support it, I’ve never supported it, I’ve had relatives in end of life circumstances where this issue would be discussed, but it’s something I cannot support.

“I respect that people have a different point of view, that is their entire right, but that is my point of view, I do not support it and I never will.’’

Guy’s clear position will make it increasingly important for Premier Daniel Andrews to declare his hand and outline how the road will be cleared for a parliamentary vote.

Guy’s position is one of conviction, where will Andrews head?

It is not too much to state that this vote could determine whether the government survives, given the fragile internal make-up of the Labor caucus.

One suggestion is that Labor ministers are promoting euthanasia as a means of distracting attention from the CFA debacle.

It is quite possible that this is exactly what is going on.

Light a political bushfire to distract from the attention of another bushfire.

Ministers to go on the record backing legalised killing include Tim Pallas, Jill Hennessy, Dick Wynne and Lily D’Ambrosio.

Labor’s right wing Catholic MPs will have deep trouble with the issue at the very time that Andrews’ leadership has been under scrutiny from the party’s right.

The vote will also cause significant angst for Catholic Liberal MPs.

The Victorian Liberal Party has become increasingly Catholic in recent decades and the church will no doubt be putting a lot of pressure on MPs not to buckle to Labor’s agenda.

The genesis for the debate has been a cross-party committee that recommended the government legalise assisted dying for people suffering from serious and incurable conditions.

It made nearly 50 recommendations including amending the Crimes Act to protect doctors who kill people prematurely.

Steve Bracks as premier would never have allowed this issue to come so close to a parliamentary vote but Andrews is a different beast.

The last serious social issue battle in the Victorian Parliament was nearly a decade ago over the decriminalising of abortion, which passed both houses.

However, it raised some interesting opponents to the move, including former Attorney-General Rob Hulls, a Xavier College educated lawyer.

HOW LABOR RUINED GAY MARRIAGE

While on social issues, Today in Victoria is bemused with the way Labor has railed against the national vote on gay marriage.

If ever an issue deserved to be dealt with, it is the right of consenting adults to choose who they marry.

Bill Shorten’s decision to kill the plebiscite will probably drag the debate back at least another parliamentary term, on the assumption that the Coalition loses the next election, which is a likely outcome on a no change basis.

Supporters of gay marriage but opponents of the plebiscite are forgetting some fundamental things.

First, the national vote would probably land strongly in favour of gay marriage.

Second, it was what Turnbull said he would do when he won office.

The Greens have been running around Victoria crying that Turnbull doesn’t have a mandate for a plebiscite, which is utter rubbish. It has a parliamentary majority and that’s all that matters.

THE CASE FOR GRADED SEPARATIONS

The death of two women at a level crossing in Surrey Hills yesterday underpins the treacherous nature of train and car collisions.

The women in their 70s were killed when their black Hyundai was crushed by a train and pushed 100m into a station platform shortly before 4pm at the Union Road crossing.

It also bolsters Labor’s argument for abolishing $6 billion worth of level crossings across Melbourne in a bid to free up capacity on the rail network.

The huge cost of graded separations, which can cost $100 million in some cases, underpins the challenges of providing for a growing city.