David Pocock (ACT, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I want to take this opportunity to thank Senator Gallagher for her work on this for well over a decade now and for the leadership she has shown at the Assembly and in this place. I want to acknowledge and recognise the people who have been working on this for a very long time. I also want to thank the dozens and dozens of people and groups that I have met with on all sides of this debate. I acknowledge that this is something that is deeply personal to many. I fully respect the views of Senator Duniam and others when it comes to this bill, and I do not begrudge you voting the way you vote.

I would like to point out that we've known that this bill was coming for quite some time now, and I'm really concerned about process here. If, on other bills, we're able to enter Committee of the Whole and then have senators request that a vote be delayed while we draft amendments, I have concerns about that. As to what the amendments could be, as Senator Gallagher pointed out, this is the simplest of bills. This is about restoring territory rights. I would remind Senator Henderson that the people she represents have had the right in their state to debate and, ultimately, legislate on this.

I plead with the committee. People have been able to put their position on record. I understand that not everyone is comfortable with this, but this is about territory rights. This is about recognising that the territories are mature enough to debate and legislate on issues as sensitive as voluntary assisted dying. I urge the committee to deal with this matter. There's a huge amount of other legislation before us. This is incredibly important. but, in the scheme of things, it's quite a simple yes or no.