Tanczos Nandor: Appointments — Abortion Supervisory Committee 
Tanczos Nandor: Appointments — Abortion Supervisory Committee 
[Volume:639;Page:9916] 
NANDOR TANCZOS (Green) 
: 
 I want first of all to thank members for their contributions. There have been some very thoughtful contributions and it is right that that should be the case because this is a serious issue. It is right that we take these matters seriously and discuss them with care as well. Some important issues have been highlighted and I am thinking of some of the points Mr English raised around the difficult legal limbo that we seem to be in. Significant issues have been raised it is right that we should be discussing them and Bill English made a number of proposals around them. 
I tend to agree that there should be some kind of review. In fact when the Justice and Electoral Committee looked at the Abortion Supervisory Committee Murray Smith and I joined in saying there should be a review although I suspect for different reasons. It seems to me that the law does not actually reflect the modern world. I know that it is a difficult and contentious issue and that it is a difficult thing for Parliament to deal with but I think we need to look at the law to make sure that it is in tune with reality because we would be in a difficult position if that were not the case. 
Of course this is a conscience vote and I am speaking on my own behalf here. I put it clearly on the record that I am anti-abortion. I have some personal awareness of how traumatic those kinds of procedures can be. But I am also very strongly pro-choice. I guess my main concern is that I would not want to support anything that made the situation more dangerous for women in our country. Similarly I would be very very cautious about anything that appeared to restrict women’s access to abortion. Women find themselves in all kinds of situations and anything that would lead to the kind of backstreet abortion situation that members have previously referred to is something we must absolutely reject. We need to be very cautious about any changes we seek to make. It has to be an absolute bottom line that safety for women with regard to abortion must be paramount. 
Both Mr Copeland and Peter Brown mentioned the issue of men’s involvement and they raised some important points. Although it is not just a women’s issue in reality for many women it is. They face these choices alone and ultimately at the end of the day it is the women who are likely to have to take the bulk of the responsibility for any decisions made. I think we all probably know women who have had children with men who subsequently took off and left them to take responsibility. I agree with Mr Brown that that is something we need to be talking to young men about in our country. We need to be instilling a sense of responsibility in this area.  
Peter Brown 
: I’m glad you looked at me when you said “young men”. 
NANDOR TANCZOS 
: Oh indeed! I think it is a serious issue for us and as I say the reality is that for many women it is an issue they face alone. 
But when Mr Brown put up a proposal for another appointment because he thinks we need a man on the Abortion Supervisory Committee I was reminded of the New Zealand First billboards during the election campaign. Maybe this is just a way of implementing New Zealand First’s election promises—“A man for a change”. I do not think it is a serious proposal because if it were I would have expected the member to talk to caucuses and members and to make information available about his proposal and I am not aware that that has happened. So we do not take that proposal particularly seriously. 
Mr Copeland talked about the increasing number of abortions. I do not have the figures to hand about what the situation is at the moment. 
Hon Member 
: It’s falling. 
NANDOR TANCZOS 
: I am told that the abortion rate is falling. 
Gordon Copeland 
: 17900 last year. 
NANDOR TANCZOS 
: There is some dispute among members as to whether the trend is falling or rising. That is interesting in itself. 
One of the interesting things we heard about when we spoke to members of the Abortion Supervisory Committee at the Justice and Electoral Committee was the impact of different cultures. They talked about increasing amounts of immigration from countries where abortion is used more or less as a contraceptive tool and the way that has changed the statistics not just in terms of the number of abortions but in terms of the number of abortions that an individual might have. That rate had been increasing over time. It is certainly not generally the practice in this country but it is something we have to be aware of. When we talk about things like increasing numbers of abortions and the increasing number of abortions that any individual might have we have to be aware of these factors as well because otherwise we are liable to look for simplistic answers to things that are a lot more complex than they appear to be on the face of it. 
I will finish by stating that the Green Party as I indicated is not supporting Peter Brown’s amendment. Nor are we supporting Gordon Copeland’s amendment. We do support the nominations put forward by the Government. We think that those people will acquit themselves well in this role. But as I said speaking for myself I do think that sooner or later this Parliament will have to grasp the thistle and have a real look at this issue. It is a difficult and contentious area. Even in the Green Party we have a huge range of views on it in our caucus and our membership. So it is a difficult thing to deal with but sooner or later will we have to grasp the issue and that is what we are paid to do; that is our role as MPs. So I look forward to that day.