Both major parties in Victoria have dismayed pro-life voters with their pledge to provide free abortion
services whichever one of them wins the state election next month. After the Labor party announced its
decision, the allegedly “conservative” Liberals immediately followed suit, showing there is little difference between the policies of the two parties.
by Kathy Clubb
Labor’s assault on the unborn
The Labor Victoria website spelt out the ALP’s commitment in a media release on October 15, 2026. Referring to abortion as “healthcare”, Labor has promised to eliminate all out-of-pocket costs for abortions across the state.
Specifically, the government will pay providers to kill babies under 16 weeks’ gestation: it plans to eliminate GP and specialist consultation fees as well as imaging and testing fees, and to provide free medication. It would also expand eligibility for the Victorian Patient Travel Assistance Scheme (VPTAS), making it easier for rural women to travel to have their babies killed.
Labor claims this will save women more than $1,000 on the cost of aborting their children.
Additionally, the cut-off point for dangerous chemically-induced abortions will be increased from nine to 10 weeks’ gestation with the possibility of increasing the limit to 12 weeks. Labor also plans to provide more training for midwives and nurse practitioners who are prepared to kill babies in “community health care” settings and will increase support for an existing toll-free abortion hotline.
Labor also took the opportunity to employ scare tactics, claiming that “Polling shows the Liberals and One Nation can only form a government together, and One Nation wants to make abortion a criminal offence”. This is factually incorrect, as One Nation, despite referring to itself as “pro-life”, is only against late-term abortion and thus would allow the majority of abortions to continue. (N.B: Instead of pledging free abortions, One Nation plans support pregnant mothers — a helpful and refreshing offer.)
It goes without saying that a bipartisan policy to provide free abortions doesn’t appear from nowhere. Indeed, the country’s biggest abortion-provider, Marie Stopes International (MSI), revealed that “… [Labor’s] commitment is the result of years of work by women’s health organisations, doctors, nurses, pharmacists and researchers…”.
Muted reactions
Only hours after the Labor party’s announcement, Opposition leader and practising Catholic Jess Wilson matched the promise of free abortions if the Liberals are elected in November. Wilson stated the Liberals have no plans to change Victoria’s already permissive abortion laws while pledging, like Labor, to make abortions free to 16 weeks.
The expected backlash against the promise of free abortions has unfortunately been fairly limp.
High-profile Church leaders have been vocal, if somewhat guarded, about the decision, with the Catholic Archbishop of Melbourne, Peter Comensoli, producing an article for The Australian, which he also published on his social media account. He criticised the two major parties’ pledge of free abortions, exhorting the public to vote wisely at November’s election. The Moderator of the Presbyterian Church of Victoria, Rev. Dr John P Wilson, released an open letter, expressing his “dismay” and “sadness”.
Some media reports, however, have been scathing. Commentators at News24 (the new name for Sky News Australia) slammed the announcements. James Macpherson rightly pointed out Victoria’s serious financial strife, saying that “abortions will have to go on the state credit card”. Macpherson also mocked the Health Minister’s claim that free abortions are a form of “cost-of-living relief”.
Dissent within Liberal ranks
Liberal Party insiders have told Endeavour Forum that several long-standing members are now preparing to leave the party over its free abortion policy; but to date there has been no official protest from pro-life Liberal MPs.
Endeavour Forum’s John Morrissey, a long-time member of the Liberal Party, believes that, apart from its anti-life aspect, the Liberals missed a strategic opportunity with their new policy: “The Coalition would be wise not to be drawn into a debate on further funding for abortion, but instead should mount a full-scale attack on Labor’s neglect of hospitals, scans, ambulances and other health areas, which is as egregious as its pothole legacy.”
As noted by Julie Robinson, wife of Queensland’s former LNP parliamentarian Mark Robinson, the timing of Victoria’s bipartisan support for free abortion was especially disturbing, occurring as it did on October 15, which is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day, observed annually by the United States, Canada and Australia.
Mrs Robinson, who has worked with pregnancy-support services, asked, “Could you not just all shut your mouths and allow mums, dads and family members to grieve and remember for one day!? Pregnancy loss grief includes loss from miscarriage, stillbirth and for some women, terminations …”
Premier Ben Carroll used to be pro-life
Like Liberal opposition leader Jess Wilson, Labor premier Ben Carroll was educated at a Catholic school. Thus, one would expect him to have been exposed to at least some arguments about the sanctity of human life and the immorality of abortion. Indeed, a source has told Endeavour Forum that Carroll formerly identified as pro-life, and was once even part of a group of pro-life Labor parliamentarians.
As late as 2013, there was evidence of Carroll having pro-life sympathies. According to a report on social media, Carroll supported west Melbourne GP, Dr Mark Hobart, when the latter was cautioned for refusing to refer a couple for a sex-selection abortion. It is said that Carroll also floated the idea of putting forward a private member’s bill to remove the clause in Victoria’s abortion legislation which forces doctors to violate their consciences and refer patients for abortions.
So what has changed Ben Carroll’s mind? Why is he now using the promise of dead babies to win votes
The ‘uniparty’
While the Australian Capital Territory made abortions free in 2023, no state has done so until now. The track record and tenacity of the abortion lobby suggest there will be a concurrent push for more Australian states to provide abortions for free in the future.
The question now is: will pro-life voters show their disapproval at the polls, or will they continue to vote for the Liberal Party in the name of “strategy” and “choosing the lesser evil”? Too many such people seem to believe that being “wise as serpents and gentle as doves” means extending continued support to politicians who are blatantly anti-life.
It is now obvious that the phantasm of propping up the two-party system inevitably leads to compromise with the prevailing culture. The delusional attempt to “change the party from the inside” has led us to the point where “conservative” parties are, for all intents and purposes, indistinguishable from the radical left.
About the author
Kathy Clubb is an Australian mother and grandmother who has home-educated her children for the best part of 30 years. In 2016, Kathy was part of an unsuccessful attempt to defeat Victoria’s abortion exclusion- zones, which led to a constitutional challenge in the High Court of Australia in late 2018. Her articles have appeared at Family Life International, The Remnant Newspaper, LifeSiteNews, the Daily Declaration, Caldron Pool and Fidelity magazine.