A Bill for an Act to prohibit misleading or deceptive advertising or notification of pregnancy counselling services, and for related purposes
The Parliament of Australia enacts:
Part 1—Preliminary
1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the Transparent Advertising and Notification of Pregnancy Counselling Services Bill 2005.
2 Commencement
This Act commences on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.
3 Definitions
In this Act:
advertise, advertising and advertising material includes every form of advertisement or notice, whether to the public or not, and whether in a newspaper, magazine, pamphlet, circular, catalogue or other publication, by television or internet, by display of notices, signs or labels, by distribution of, or display of, pictures or films or in any other way.
notification includes the listing, description or publication of the pregnancy counselling service in telephone directories, Yellow Pages and like telephone directories, or electronic or print media in whatever form.
non-directive pregnancy counselling service means a service that offers counselling, information services, referrals and support on all three pregnancy options being
(a) raising the child; or
(b) adoption; or
(c) termination of pregnancy
and will provide referrals to termination of pregnancy services where requested.
person includes an organisation, authority, agency or association (however described) and includes a person, organisation, authority, agency or association in respect of which legislative power has been referred to the Parliament of the Commonwealth, by the Parliament of any State or States for the purposes of this Act.
pregnancy counselling service means a counselling service that has as its purpose, or one of its purposes, the provision of advice or information services to women and their support persons regarding options in relation to pregnancy, childbirth or termination of pregnancy.
publication includes publication by means of radio, television, internet, telephone or print media in whatever form.
publish includes publishing by means of radio, television, internet, telephone or print media in whatever form.
termination of pregnancy means the surgical or medical termination of a pregnancy.
4 Objects
The objects of this Act are to:
(a) prohibit misleading and deceptive notification and advertising of pregnancy counselling services;
(b) promote transparency and full choice in the notification and advertising of pregnancy counselling services;
(c) improve public health; and
(d) minimise the difficulties associated with obtaining advice to deal with unplanned pregnancy.
Part 2—Misleading advertising or notification
5 Misleading advertising or notification of pregnancy counselling services
(1) An organisation, authority, agency, association or person that provides a pregnancy counselling service must not print, publish, distribute, display or broadcast, or cause, permit or authorise to be printed, published, distributed, displayed or broadcast:
(a) any advertising material that is misleading or deceptive as to the nature of the services it provides; or
(b) any notification of its services that is misleading or deceptive as to the nature of the services it provides.
(2) In a prosecution of a person for an offence against subsection (1), it is a defence if a person proves that he or she:
(a) took no part in determining the content of the material; and
(b) could not reasonably be expected to have known that the material was inaccurate or misleading.
(3) This section applies whether the service is provided free of charge or for a fee.
(4) Contravention of subsection (1) is an offence.
Penalty: For a corporation a maximum of 10,000 penalty units.
For a person a maximum of 2,000 penalty units.
Note: Section 4B(3) of the Crimes Act 1914 does not apply.
6 Requirements for advertising or notification of pregnancy counselling services
(1) A person that advertises or notifies a pregnancy counselling service that does not provide referrals for terminations of pregnancy must include in the advertising or notification material a statement that “This service does not provide referrals for terminations of pregnancy” or a like statement.
(2) In a prosecution of a person for an offence against subsection (1), it is a defence if a person proves that he or she:
(a) took no part in determining the content of the material; and
(b) could not reasonably be expected to have known that the material was inaccurate or misleading or deceptive.
(3) Advertising or notifying material that does not comply with subsection (1) is taken to be material that is misleading or deceptive to the public for the purposes of section 5.
(4) Contravention of subsection (1) is an offence.
Penalty:
(a) for a corporation—a maximum of 10,000 penalty units;
(b) for a person— a maximum of 2,000 penalty units.
Note: Section 4B(3) of the Crimes Act 1914 does not apply.
7 Requirement for telephone service providers to list a non-directive pregnancy counselling service
Telephone carriage service providers providing alphabetical public number directories in accordance with clause 9 of the Carrier Licence Conditions (Telstra Corporation Limited) Declaration 1997 may only include non-directive pregnancy counselling services on the 24 hour health and help call pages of each alphabetical public number directory.
8 Grant of Commonwealth financial assistance not payable where a pregnancy counselling service engages in misleading or deceptive conduct
Where a participating State receives financial assistance from the Commonwealth in whatever form and the financial assistance is used for making payments to a pregnancy counselling service and the service is found to have engaged in misleading or deceptive conduct in accordance with section 5 of this Act, or has not met the notification requirement of section 6 of this Act, the financial assistance is not payable until the pregnancy counselling service has ceased to engage in the misleading or deceptive conduct or has met the notification requirement of section 6.
9 Minister to report annually on payments to and performance of pregnancy counselling services
(1) Where a payment or a grant of financial assistance is made by the Commonwealth:
(a) to a State where the payment is made to a pregnancy counselling service; or
(b) directly to a service provider engaged in the provision of a pregnancy counselling service;
the Minister is to report annually:
(c) the amount of each payment to each State and each pregnancy counselling service provider; and
(d) the name of each service provider receiving a payment; and
(e) the policy that each service provider advocates being either:
(i) a pregnancy counselling service which does not provide referrals for terminations of pregnancy; or
(ii) a non-directive pregnancy counselling service.
(2) The Minister must, as soon as practicable after 30 June but before 30 September in each year, cause to be laid before each House of the Parliament a report in accordance with subsection (1).
10 Disclosure of policy by pregnancy counselling service a condition of financial assistance
A pregnancy counselling service is ineligible to receive a payment or a grant of financial assistance from the Commonwealth:
(a) unless it first discloses in any contract made after 30 June 2005 with the Commonwealth or with a State whether it is:
(i) a pregnancy counselling service which does not provide referrals for terminations of pregnancy; or
(ii) a non-directive pregnancy counselling service.
(b) the Minister reports the information obtained in accordance with paragraph (a) in the annual report required by section 9.
11 Regulations
The Governor-General may make regulations prescribing matters:
(a) required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed; or
(b) necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.