Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / NT Senator Jacinta Price says she voted in support of the Territory Rights bill but has little faith in the current NT Government when it comes to legislating on euthanasia

Transcript

NT Senator Jacinta Price says she voted in support of the Territory Rights bill but has little faith in the current NT Government when it comes to legislating on euthanasia · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Well as we know, laws restricting the Act and the
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: Northern Territory from legislating on voluntary euthanasia have indeed been repealed.
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: After more than two decades of being in place. The
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: Restoring the Territory Rights Bill pass Parliament on Thursday night
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  Speaker 1: last night, overturning legislation put forward by Liberal MP Kevin
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  Speaker 1: Andrews all the way back in nineteen ninety seven that
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  Speaker 1: precluded the territories from being able to debate and pass
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  Speaker 1: voluntary assisted dying laws. Now joining me on the line
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  Speaker 1: is the COLP Senator for the Northern Territory, justa Enter Price.
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  Speaker 1: Good morning to you.
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  Speaker 2: Good morning, Katie Jacent.
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  Speaker 1: How are you feeling about the passing of the bill.
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  Speaker 2: Oh, look, I'm happy for Territorians that the bill has
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  Speaker 2: been passed now. I voted in support of it. It's
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  Speaker 2: been a whole huge learning experience for me, and you know,
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  Speaker 2: understanding my position as a senator in the House of
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  Speaker 2: Review and considering everything that comes before me, you know,
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  Speaker 2: across all arguments and all positions, and you know, my amendments,
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  Speaker 2: my amendments that I put up prior to the final
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  Speaker 2: vote of the bill didn't get up. But you know,
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  Speaker 2: I thought hard, and it was for me, it was
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  Speaker 2: about it was certainly not about taking away the rights
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  Speaker 2: of Territori and to legislate. It was just about elevating
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  Speaker 2: the rights, the human rights of our vulnerable, our children.
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  Speaker 2: Those are the disability and those are the mental impairment.
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  Speaker 2: So look, I'm happy that it's passed. I will be
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  Speaker 2: calling on the territory government should at any stage, whoever
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  Speaker 2: that government might be, whether it's the Labor government or
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  Speaker 2: a Theopic government, to make sure that those provisions are
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  Speaker 2: put in place to safeguard those vulnerable within our community
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  Speaker 2: when they consider legislation for voluntary assisted dying. So I'll
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  Speaker 2: get to.
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  Speaker 1: That, Nisique, But I know that I've had a few
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  Speaker 1: people messaging this morning asking did you support it in
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  Speaker 1: the end, because my understanding is that there was obviously
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  Speaker 1: the vote last week, that preliminary vote which you and
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  Speaker 1: I spoke about last week, and then there were the
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  Speaker 1: you know, the opportunity for those amendments to be put
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  Speaker 1: forward last night. But was there another vote and did
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  Speaker 1: you vote?
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  Speaker 2: Yes, Yes, yes, there was another vote. I voted in
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  Speaker 2: favor with Iron and that's what went through last night.
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  Speaker 2: I guess last night there wasn't a call for a
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  Speaker 2: division to count votes. So but yes, I was in favor.
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  Speaker 2: I stated even prior to my amendment going to the
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  Speaker 2: vote that I would be supporting the bill. So that's
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  Speaker 2: that's how I voted.
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  Speaker 1: Some people, you know, were really upsets with your stants
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  Speaker 1: last week when we spoke to you about this. What
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  Speaker 1: do you say to those people who felt as though
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  Speaker 1: you'd made the wrong move after we spoke to you
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  Speaker 1: last week.
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  Speaker 2: Well, looks as as my colleagues in the Senate acknowledge,
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  Speaker 2: my position was to came from a good place in
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  Speaker 2: terms of attempting to put forward those amendments. That's all
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  Speaker 2: my aim was. That's all I wanted to be able
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  Speaker 2: to do last week. It wasn't it wasn't actually part
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  Speaker 2: of the agenda to bring it to the final vote.
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  Speaker 2: It was always going to be last night on Thursday night,
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  Speaker 2: And my position was that my amendments had not been finalized,
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  Speaker 2: and I wanted to be able to provide those amendments
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  Speaker 2: for debate on the floor should the opportunity come up
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  Speaker 2: that they be supported. And obviously they didn't. And this
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  Speaker 2: is democracy at work, and you know, I'm perfectly okay
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  Speaker 2: with that, I will be obviously keeping an eye on
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  Speaker 2: things going forward, and you know, and being very vocal
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  Speaker 2: about my concerns around vulnerable people, because with everything that
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  Speaker 2: I do, they take priority, you know, with the decisions
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  Speaker 2: that I make in Federal Parliament, it's the vulnerable people
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  Speaker 2: of the Northern Territory that certainly take priority to me.
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  Speaker 1: But for the record, Senator, for those out there listening,
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  Speaker 1: who who were concerned or who are saying that you
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  Speaker 1: voted against the bill, you voted yes with the bill
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  Speaker 1: that you did want territory rights to, you know, for
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  Speaker 1: us to be able to make our own decisions here
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  Speaker 1: in the territory when it comes to voluntary assisted dying.
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  Speaker 2: Correct, that's right. I voted for it last night and
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  Speaker 2: I state that quite clearly as well when delivering my speech.
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  Speaker 1: Now, Senator, as you said, you did put forward those
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  Speaker 1: amendments to impose, you know, some of those different caveates
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  Speaker 1: on territories that would not allow those under the age
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  Speaker 1: of eighteen. I believe you'd told us last week you
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  Speaker 1: were concerned with but also like you've just touched on
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  Speaker 1: people with disabilities and mental illness. Are you are you
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  Speaker 1: satisfied that that young people and indeed those with disabilities
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  Speaker 1: are going to be protected.
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  Speaker 2: Well, I'll see that when the you know, legislation is
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  Speaker 2: drafted in the Territory parliament. Wh you know, those safeguards
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  Speaker 2: will be there other states and the provisions that I
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  Speaker 2: put up have been passed by other states that have
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  Speaker 2: voluntary assisted dying. So I would hope that, you know,
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  Speaker 2: that would provide for a template for the Territory to
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  Speaker 2: follow in ensuring those safeguards exist. So I guess it
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  Speaker 2: would be unusual if the Territory didn't provide those safeguards
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  Speaker 2: going forward. And I'm sure, you know, if whatever government
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  Speaker 2: is in place has the interests of Territorians at heart,
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  Speaker 2: and they all ensure that those safeguards are there.
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  Speaker 1: Now I know the Act Chief Minister Andrew Barr revealed
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  Speaker 1: last night or yesterday that the Act is going to
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  Speaker 1: look to legislate voluntary assisted dying within as soon as
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  Speaker 1: twelve months. He said, we will have a thorough and
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  Speaker 1: engaged process and it will be a conscience vote. I
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  Speaker 1: think it will bring out the best in the Act Parliament,
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  Speaker 1: is what he'd said publicly yesterday. We had the Attorney
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  Speaker 1: General Chancey Paig on the week that was the small
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  Speaker 1: and the Northern Territory government have got no plans to
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  Speaker 1: push this through before the next Northern Territory election in
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  Speaker 1: August twenty twenty four. He says that they want to
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  Speaker 1: get through extensive consultation right around the territory. Do you
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  Speaker 1: think that's the right move?
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  Speaker 2: Extensive consultation is the right move, And hopefully they've learned
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  Speaker 2: from the fact that there's been very little consultation with
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  Speaker 2: the lifting of the alcohol bands in communities, and I
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  Speaker 2: know that I don't know, well, I don't know if
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  Speaker 2: they're actually playing catch up with that, but I'm certainly
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  Speaker 2: doing what I can from my position to in terms
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  Speaker 2: of drafting my bill on the back of the fact
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  Speaker 2: that I have had many many concerned community members bringing
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  Speaker 2: me about the alcohol feel violence back out in their
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  Speaker 2: communities again. So in the new year, I'll bring that
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  Speaker 2: motion forward to present that private Senator's bill in the
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  Speaker 2: hope that really can establish some alcohol management plan and
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  Speaker 2: until such time as that takes place, then the bands,
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  Speaker 2: you know, I'm seeking for those bands to be maintain,
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  Speaker 2: what to be booked back in place and maintained until
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  Speaker 2: such time as some serious alcohol management planning has has
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  Speaker 2: taken place, So yeah, I mean, you know, you can
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  Speaker 2: say you're going to do something, but I guess the
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  Speaker 2: proofs in the pudding. So it'll be interesting to see
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  Speaker 2: what happens going forward and what happens at the next
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  Speaker 2: territory election as well.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, it will. It'll be interesting to see exactly, you know,
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  Speaker 1: what consultation does take place with this, with the voluntary
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  Speaker 1: assisted dying. There is a question, let's come through from
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  Speaker 1: a listener, do you not trust the Northern Territory to
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  Speaker 1: make those decisions to protect the vulnerable. This is in
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  Speaker 1: relation to the voluntary assisted dying.
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  Speaker 2: I have very little trust for the current files labor government.
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  Speaker 2: I would have a lot of trust in earlier Finocchiaro
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  Speaker 2: led DLP territory government, absolute trust in them, but right
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  Speaker 2: now I don't have much trust in this Labor file government.
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  Speaker 2: And considering that there have been members of the Labor
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  Speaker 2: Party who have supported an individual within their ranks who's
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  Speaker 2: been sentenced after child rape, well then that's another reason
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  Speaker 2: for me to have very little trust. So I guess
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  Speaker 2: that answers the question for that one.
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  Speaker 1: Well, Senator, it's been a busy week, I'm sure, are
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  Speaker 1: you guys done now for the year or have you
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  Speaker 1: still got Are there still sitting days now in Canberra?
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  Speaker 1: Are you all finished?
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  Speaker 2: So sitting days are over, but we still have some
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  Speaker 2: committee work to finalize for the end of the year,
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  Speaker 2: so that work's got to be done worked, not over
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  Speaker 2: just yet. I'm looking forward to it though.
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  Speaker 1: It's been a busy one, no doubt about it. Well,
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  Speaker 1: we'll probably catch up with you before the year's end anyway,
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  Speaker 1: appreciate your time this morning, Thanks for.
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  Speaker 2: Coming on, no worries, Thank you very much.
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  Speaker 1: Thank you.