Neither the Prime Minister, John Howard, nor the Opposition Leader, Kevin Rudd, would be drawn on the issue yesterday. A spokesman for Mr Rudd said: "The Parliament of Australia has voted on this issue and Mr Rudd respects that vote." The Prime Minister's spokesman referred to Mr Howard's previous comments on the issue, and said: "The last time it was before Parliament it was a free vote."
The Premier, Morris Iemma, said only that he did not support euthanasia. The NSW Opposition Leader, Peter Debnam, would not comment.
The Health Minister, Tony Abbott, said he did not expect Dr Elliott's story to have a strong impact on the convictions of "people like myself".