Australia – Scott Morrison sought advice to obstruct Nauru asylum seekers from accessing abortions, documents reveal

Advocate claims Abbott government was concerned asylum seekers and refugees were using medical transfers as a back door to get into Australia

Krishani Dhanji
Sat 7 Jun 2025

Scott Morrison overrode medical advice in the case of an asylum seeker in offshore detention trying to access an abortion, and had previously sought advice that would effectively prevent access to terminations entirely, ministerial advice reveals.

Documents released under freedom of information laws show Morrison, in 2014 as immigration minister, had sought advice to deny the transfer of women to a hospital on the Australian mainland to access termination services before 20 weeks’ gestation.

Continued: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/jun/08/scott-morrison-sought-advice-to-obstruct-nauru-asylum-seekers-from-accessing-abortions-documents-reveal-ntwnfb

07.06.2025

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Australia – COVID-19 vaccine: Archbishop Anthony Fisher condemns Oxford vaccine

Australia’s most powerful Catholic Archbishop has penned a letter warning a COVID vaccine presents an “unacceptable ethical dilemma”.

Samantha Maiden
August 24, 2020

Australia’s most powerful Catholic Archbishop Anthony Fisher has sparked outrage after suggesting the COVID-19 vaccine could create an “ethical dilemma” for Catholics who may refuse to take it because it uses a cell line from an aborted foetus in the 1970s.

The Catholic leader has outlined his “disappointment” in correspondence with Prime Minister Scott Morrison that has sparked fears it could encourage Catholics to refuse to take the vaccine on religious grounds.

Continued: https://www.news.com.au/world/coronavirus/australia/covid19-vaccine-archbishop-anthony-fisher-condemns-oxford-vaccine/news-story/7b94e83a5491b6a76964d9bddfcb495d

Telehealth has improved abortion access for women around Australia. We can’t let it lapse

A dearth of political leadership means abortion drugs remain inaccessible, unsafe and unaffordable for many women

Gina Rushton
Published on Tue 14 Jul 2020

It has been 24 years since the federal government chose the partial privatisation of Telstra over the rights of Australian women to safely terminate a pregnancy with abortion drugs. In 1996, anti-abortion independent Brian Harradine, who held the balance of power in the Senate, agreed to support John Howard’s one-third float of the telecommunications company if the government amended legislation to give the health minister veto to prohibit the import, manufacture or use of abortion drug RU486 (mifepristone).

A perpetual dearth of political leadership in the subsequent quarter century has meant the drugs remain inaccessible, unaffordable and at times unsafe for many women in Australia outside of a certain income or major city.

Continued: https://www.theguardian.com/world/commentisfree/2020/jul/15/abortion-drugs-remain-inaccessible-unsafe-and-unaffordable-for-many-australian-women

Australia – Scott Morrison targeted in anonymous leaflets over NSW abortion bill

Scott Morrison targeted in anonymous leaflets over NSW abortion bill
Flyer repeats series of false claims about the abortion reform bill currently the subject of a conscience vote in the NSW upper house

Paul Karp
Tue 24 Sep 2019

Anonymously authored anti-abortion leaflets in Canberra have targeted Scott Morrison for remaining “silent” while states including New South Wales have pushed to decriminalise abortion.

The flyer – which is not authorised but is marked as from the End Violence Against Unborn Babies Coalition – is almost identical to one targeting the Berejiklian government with inflammatory rhetoric comparing abortion to murder in Nazi concentration camps.

Continued: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/sep/25/scott-morrison-targeted-in-anonymous-leaflets-over-nsw-abortion-bill

Australia – Why conservatives are not making a fuss over Labor’s abortion policy

Why conservatives are not making a fuss over Labor's abortion policy

By Laura Tingle
Mar 13, 2019

Video (43 sec): Tanya Plibersek says there's been "a very big change in the Labor Party" regarding attitudes to abortion. (ABC News)

Last week, something extraordinary happened in federal politics and went virtually unmentioned.

The Australian Labor Party announced a policy that would have once been regarded as high-risk politics at the least.

Continued: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-14/conservatives-arent-making-a-fuss-over-labors-abortion-policy/10893662

Australia – Labor’s abortion policy: all the issues explained

Labor's abortion policy: all the issues explained
The opposition’s plan to allow open up sexual health services to more women raises key questions about access, cost and state laws

Josephine Tovey
Thu 7 Mar 2019

Labor has announced a national sexual and reproductive health strategy to improve access to contraception and abortion. A major plank of this policy is to “support all women to access termination services in public hospitals”, raising a number of crucial questions:
What has Labor announced?

As part of the broader package, Labor this week announced that if they’re elected, they would work to ensure abortion is provided “consistently” in public hospitals throughout Australia.

Continued: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/mar/07/labors-abortion-policy-all-the-issues-explained

Australia – Morrison lambasts Labor for raising abortion before election

Morrison lambasts Labor for raising abortion before election
PM says debate does not ‘unite Australians’ after Labor promises to require public hospitals to provide services

Paul Karp
Wed 6 Mar 2019

Scott Morrison has blasted Labor for raising the issue of publicly funded abortions just before an election, saying he did not believe the discussion to be “good for the country”.

The prime minister said the issue was better left to the states and territories to decide and he was “disappointed” the opposition had announced its policy “in a very politically charged context”.

Continued: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/mar/06/labor-require-public-hospitals-abortion-services

06.03.2019

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Australia – George Christensen attacks own government over abortion services funding

George Christensen attacks own government over abortion services funding
Liberal National party MP says he will ask Scott Morrison to divert funding away from planned parenthood agency

Australian Associated Press
Sun 18 Mar 2018

The outspoken Liberal National party MP George Christensen has hit out at his own government for its funding of abortion services in Australia and around the world.

The federal member for Dawson was joined by the incoming Queensland senator Amanda Stoker on Sunday as they addressed hundreds of pro-lifers at a rally outside state parliament in Brisbane.

Continued: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2018/mar/18/george-christensen-attacks-own-government-over-abortion-services-funding

18.03.2018