Askew Awry on VAD Bill

Liberal Senator Wendy Askew has expressed displeasure at being allegedly misrepresented by Mike Gaffney MLC in an email to all members of Tasmania’s state parliament.

She said the email purported her support for the Voluntary Assisted Dying Bill.

Gaffney however said he only pointed to her support for issues around chronic pain, and had not implied she supported his Bill.

“In his email, which was sent on 3 September, Mr Gaffney draws a link between my speech on chronic pain, which I made in the Senate on 1 September, and support for the Voluntary Assisted Dying Bill that is to be debated in the Legislative Council,” Askew claimed.

“My speech was about the need to recognise the impact chronic pain can have for those who live with it and their communities; at no point does it mention, or support, end of life legislation,” Askew said. “I reject Mike Gaffney’s assertion that I am supporting this bill when, in fact, he is misrepresenting me to Tasmania’s Parliament.

“While I appreciate Mr Gaffney’s congratulations on my speech, and support his desire for more research into the area of chronic pain and its effects, I reject his idea that my speech supports clause 142 (5)(6) in the EOLC (VAD) Bill where ‘…the person suffering from pain that is, in the opinion of the person, intolerable – ought to have access to the voluntary assisted dying process…’” Askew said.

Askew said that as co-convenor of the new Parliamentary Friends of Pain Management group, she was calling for changes to Australia’s policy around pain management to support the 3.37 million Australians who live with chronic pain.

Gaffney provided Tasmanian Times with a copy of a message sent to Askew following her outburst, which in turn included the original email circulated to members of the Tasmanian Parliament.

Hi Wendy, 

I believe you may have received misinformation regarding what I actually forwarded to Tasmanian MP’s earlier today regarding your excellent speech on Monday night.

This is what I sent to my Members  in both Houses

I clearly stated that your speech complimented 2 clauses in the Bill which are primarily focussed on an independent pain review being undertaken in Tasmania after a 3 year period from the commencement of the Bill.

I made no reference to your support or otherwise of said Bill. 

I also have copied in all Members so there can be no misrepresentation of what i actually forwarded.

I hope it is warmer in Canberra than it currently is here ! 

Yours truly
Mike 

Mike Gaffney (MLC) 

Gaffney’s End-of-Life Choices (Voluntary Assisted Dying) Bill 2020, a Private Member’s Bill introduced in the Legislative Council, is due for a second reading on 15 September.

For clarification, Tasmanian Times put the following questions to Senator Askew:

• what is your position on Gaffney’s VAD Bill?
• what is your position regarding VAD in general?

UPDATE:

Senator Askew’s office responded over a day later with the following:

Sorry for my delay in coming back to you with this.

Senator Askew’s responded (sic) to your question by saying: “As the bill is before the state parliament, and not before the Senate, I will not have reason to vote for, or against it. I do, however, fundamentally disagree with VAD and therefore doubt that I would be supportive of it. The misrepresentation I was referring to was the imputation that I had agreed to, or supported, a bill, or clauses of that bill, that I had had no reason to read in full, or consult with others on.”