Kate Chaney (Curtin, Independent) | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to present a petition signed by more than 13,000 Australians. The petition has been considered by the Petitions Committee and found to be in order. It calls on this House to amend the Criminal Code Act so that it no longer applies to voluntary assisted dying, VAD. Thirteen thousand people have delivered a simple message to the government: a dying person should not suffer because of an anomaly in Commonwealth law.

The problem isn't complicated. VAD is now an established part of Australia's health system. Every state and the ACT have legislated for it with strict safeguards. The Northern Territory may follow this year. Yet a provision in the Commonwealth Criminal Code written in 2005, 12 years before any VAD law existed and aimed at pro-suicide websites, criminalises the use of telecommunications for VAD. A doctor who uses the phone, internet, fax, email or video conferencing to provide lawful VAD care risks prosecution and fines greater than $300,000. This means seriously ill patients must attend every consultation in person, travelling long distances while gravely unwell, often more than once, to make and confirm their request. This particularly affects Australians in rural and remote areas.

This petition was brought to the House by Emma Hargreaves on behalf of her father, Terry. In his final weeks just reaching the bathroom was a huge task, let alone getting into a car for a medical appointment. This outdated Commonwealth code provision meant telehealth was not an option for Terry. It should have been. Emma said it would have made an enormous difference and empowered her dad in his final moments. Terry deserved a better death. VAD is lawful in every state, yet dying people like Terry cannot properly access it.

Australia is the only country in the world that prohibits telehealth for voluntary assisted dying. The solution is simple and it's ready. I introduced a private member's bill in 2024 and relisted it on the Notice Paper this year to amend the Criminal Code so it no longer applies to accessing VAD through telehealth in line with state and territory law. The Attorney-General has described this as a complex issue. With respect, it really is not. All states and the ACT have done their part. Every one of them has legislated with safeguards. The only barrier that remains is a single provision of the Commonwealth Code, so the problem is one of will not complexity. The AMA, the Law Council, VAD regulatory bodies, 20 health organisations and state attorneys-general and health ministers all support this change. Refusing to fix this is a choice, leaving Australians like Terry to suffer needlessly. I commend this petition to the House.

Rebekha Sharkie (Mayo, Centre Alliance) | Link to this | Hansard source

Has the petition been approved by the Petitions Committee?

Kate Chaney (Curtin, Independent) | Link to this | Hansard source

Yes, it has.