A July 2008 survey conducted by a research firm indicated that majority of Australians support access to late abortion and did not support penalising doctors who performed late abortions.

The research of Crosby/Textor published in the Medical Journal of Australia was based on an anonymous survey of 1,050 Australians aged 18 and older. About 87 percent of respondents believe abortion should be lawful in the first trimester.

Many respondents opposed sanctions against doctors, particularly when abortion is sought because of maternal or fetal complications rather than personal reasons, Medical News Today quoted Dr. Lachlan de Crespigny as saying. Crespignu, along with Prof. Julian Savulescu and colleagues from UK's Oxford Uehiro Centre for Practical Ethics at the University of Oxford, reported the survey's results in the journal.

Savulescu, on the other hand, recommended that abortion be decriminalised and be freely and easily be available on request.

The Sir Louis Matheson Visiting Professor at Monash University reasoned that it is time to take a more ethical approach to abortion. It is a valid part of family planning.

Except for Victoria and ACT, abortion is a crime in all Australian jurisdictions.

Australia Abortion