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Not sure that is true.
Protection to abortion rights is a state/territory issue and, as you like me are from SA, it's important to remember that in 1969, South Australia became the first Australian jurisdiction to legislate for the lawful medical termination of pregnancy when necessary to protect the life or health of a pregnant person. (back in the days when South Australia was at the forefront of social reform - those days are long gone with the religious right with a firm foothold in both the SA ALP and Liberal parties).
Abortion has now been fully decriminalised in all states and territories of Australia - although I think that references to the provision of abortion care is still in the criminal codes in Western Australia. There are also variations between states/territories with respect to the particular medical procedures available at certain gestation periods.
The danger to protections for abortions is real - but at the state/territory level from the religious right who are seeking to wind back the reforms of the past 50 years and taking legislative action to take it out of the hands of women and their medical carers. As we saw in the SA Upper House last week, BOTH the ALP and Liberal Party have shied away from taking a firm policy position on this issue and have allowed individual members to take a conscience vote - this has allowed religious organisations to exert leverage and intimidation on all sides of politics, although that influence is far more visible and pervasive within state L/LNP branches than it is within the ALP.
I have no doubt that Dutton and certain other conservative aligned politicians at the Federal level would love to use abortion rights as a Trumpian style wedge issue in the lead up to the next election. But my point of clarification is that the very real danger to abortion rights in Australia lies elsewhere and is already upon us.
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