Ms MANISON - 2014-03-19
We all agree foetal alcohol spectrum disorder is a serious issue in the Territory. We do not agree locking up pregnant mums is the way to deal with a significant health issue. How does locking up a pregnant woman help deal with her alcohol issues? What happens to any other children she may have? Do you agree with your colleague the Attorney-General, who says he is looking at restraining Territory women who drink while pregnant? Why is your approach to FASD all about locking them up?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Wanguri for her question. The Attorney-General raised this issue last week, the idea of having a mechanism in place to prevent pregnant women drinking excessively, potentially harming the unborn child and the child ending up with foetal alcohol spectrum disorder. Foetal alcohol spectrum disorder is 100% preventable, but, having said that, it is not particularly easy to address. The Attorney-General was putting it out there as a possibility, an approach to addressing what will be a huge issue in the future. Already, we have people with foetal alcohol spectrum disorder in our system and it is on the public record Roseanne Fulton is one such woman who is afflicted with this very disabling condition.
It is very serious. I have not settled on any particular position when it comes to what the Attorney-General put forward to the community last week. We have not had that discussion and we have not had that debate within Cabinet. I share concerns about locking up women who are pregnant. It does not sit very well with me, but I have concerns about an unborn child being poisoned and inflicted with foetal alcohol syndrome for the rest of its life. It is a dilemma, and it is a debate I look forward to having. My team within Health will be teasing it out so we have some clarity, some information and some research done on whether this happens elsewhere. I do not know.
Do other jurisdictions try to mandate some sort of order whereby women cannot drink during their pregnancy, like we have with alcohol mandatory treatment? I do not know. We need to do this basic research and we need, as a government, to form our own position, but I look forward to hearing what the opposition thinks needs to be done in this growing and critical area of need in our community.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Wanguri for her question. The Attorney-General raised this issue last week, the idea of having a mechanism in place to prevent pregnant women drinking excessively, potentially harming the unborn child and the child ending up with foetal alcohol spectrum disorder. Foetal alcohol spectrum disorder is 100% preventable, but, having said that, it is not particularly easy to address. The Attorney-General was putting it out there as a possibility, an approach to addressing what will be a huge issue in the future. Already, we have people with foetal alcohol spectrum disorder in our system and it is on the public record Roseanne Fulton is one such woman who is afflicted with this very disabling condition.
It is very serious. I have not settled on any particular position when it comes to what the Attorney-General put forward to the community last week. We have not had that discussion and we have not had that debate within Cabinet. I share concerns about locking up women who are pregnant. It does not sit very well with me, but I have concerns about an unborn child being poisoned and inflicted with foetal alcohol syndrome for the rest of its life. It is a dilemma, and it is a debate I look forward to having. My team within Health will be teasing it out so we have some clarity, some information and some research done on whether this happens elsewhere. I do not know.
Do other jurisdictions try to mandate some sort of order whereby women cannot drink during their pregnancy, like we have with alcohol mandatory treatment? I do not know. We need to do this basic research and we need, as a government, to form our own position, but I look forward to hearing what the opposition thinks needs to be done in this growing and critical area of need in our community.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016