Abortion repeal bid may be defeated within National Party

Press, 29 May 1978, Page 6

Abortion repeal bid may be defeated within National Party

PA Hastings The abortion repeal call within the National Party looks to be lost.

. the round which may have decided the battle within the party was fought yesterday aj the Wellington Divisional Conference at Hastings when a- remit calling for repeal of tjje Contraception, Sterilisation, and Abortion Act was substantially defeated on a voice vote.

After the debate, the president of the party (Mr G. A. Chapman) said the abortion debate might go to the floor of<he party's Dominion Confaftmce but that depended a decision by the executes

Jn an interview before the conference, Mr Chapman said the Wellington divisional debate was important because conferences were split) over the abortion issue. Two; divisions had voted for repeal, one had voted against, and one had declined to debate the matter.

. The Wellington divisional vote could decide if the issue Went to the Dominion Conference, he said.

In yesterday’s debate, apart from the mover and seconder, eight persons spokes against the remit and four for it.

One speaker said only Women should vote. He, the mover and the seconder of the remit, were all from the Ybung Nationals section. • The mover, Mr J. Goodwin (Wellington Central) said hoth the Abortion Act and the amendment to the Crimes Act were poor pieces of legal drafting. Amendments were now before Parliament

but they did not deal with defects in the contraception section.

The leader of the Young Nationals, Miss D. Sanford, in seconding the remit said there was nothing she could say to alter the minds- of delegates and so she would say nothing further. A Hutt Valley delegate, Mrs J. Robertson, said there would be a 20 per cent protest vote which could create havoc among members of Parliament if the law was not repealed. This would come from dissatisfied women voters.

Speaking against the remit, Mrs Jenny Tolhurst (Wa- | nganui) said that far from restricting abortion, the new I laws provided new grounds concerning foetal abnormality. Mrs D. Atmore, leader of the women’s section, said she wanted people to give the new law a chance to work. Amendments could be made which would make the law acceptable and workable. Mrs M. A. Hood (Horowhenua) said the issue had been debated over a long period. The fact that 300,000 people signed the Repeal petition was of little consequence. Mr C. Finlayson (Ohariu) said repeal meant there would be no law. which would result in abortion on demand, and that was not what New Zealanders wanted.

In the voting on repeal, the Auckland and the Canter-

bury-Westland divisions voted for it, the Wellington and the Otago-Southland divisions voted against, and the Waikato division declined to debate the matter. Stronger measures to deal wth drunken drivers were called for. <

A remit seeking random breath-testing, a reduction in the blood-alcohol level from 100 to 80 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood, and speeding up the processing of drunken drivers so that traffic officers could spend more time on the road, was passed. > . Other remits passed at the conference included:

A cal! to review some unemployment benefits and special work schemes; Reduced personal income tax with the resulting deficit being made up bv indirect tax; Minimum and nonreducible sentences for drug traffickers: and Support for the visit to New Zealand of United States nuclear warships. The new chairman of the Wellington division of the National Party t 6 Mr R. Johnston, of Kaptti. He was elected unopposed. Tne former chairman, Mr E. Ogier (Wellington) did not seek reelection, as he is seeking the party’s candidacy for the Kaimai seat

The two deputy chairmen elected were Messrs D. Hamilton (Pahiatua) apd J. Watts (Wellington Central).