Abortions were decriminalised in Western Australia in 1998, but are only legal after 20 weeks gestation if the mother, or the unborn child, have a severe medical condition that – in the clinical judgment of two expert doctors – justifies the procedure. Mr Goiran, a pro-life parliamentarian who tabled the petition, believes the circumstances of the deaths should be thoroughly investigated, especially given parliamentary questioning revealed "no record of medical intervention or resuscitation". He said it was "statistically inconceivable" that not one of the babies could have been saved and gone on to live a normal life. Who else is going to speak for them? They can't speak for themselves, someone has to speak for them. Nick Goiran MLC "There's probably no place in the world where you'd be better off being born as a premature baby than in metropolitan Perth," Mr Goiran said.

"You've got access to these resources at King Edward Memorial Hospital and the prospects of success I'm told, from 23 weeks onwards, are good. "That doesn't mean that every single one survives, but they have good prospects of success, a high probability. "Yet, in these 27 cases we're told no medical treatment was provided." The 27 babies died since abortion became legal in Western Australia in 1998.

Mr Goiran said he was concerned the deaths were being ignored because they were linked to the contentious issue of abortion. "I simply make the point that if there was an unnatural death of any other Western Australian citizen this would be front page news and there would be an outcry," he said. "Can I be so bold as to say if the death happens in the back of a prison van, understandably there is an outcry, understandably there is an inquiry, understandably governments of any persuasion are tripping over themselves as to how quickly they can say that they can implement all of the recommendations arising out of the inquiry. "All of those things are entirely appropriate, yet in this situation, a different standard seems to apply and I can only conclude that's because the genesis has to do with a word that people are fearful of discussing, which is abortion." Campaigners: This is 'not about abortion'

Mr Goiran urged people to put aside how the babies came to be born, in this case through abortions intended to terminate pregnancies, and instead focus on the rights of the children. The purpose of abortions under WA law is the termination of a pregnancy. He said the 27 babies should have been recognised with the same rights and privileges as any other premature baby who is born "alive, breathes, [and] has a heartbeat". "My views are well known and well documented, but forget about what your view is on abortion, these are actually Western Australian babies who've been born live," Mr Goiran said.

"As soon as you're born live, you are entitled to all of the same rights and privileges as any other Western Australian citizen. "The fact that the abortion resulted in a live birth doesn't mean that you have less rights and privileges as any other prematurely born baby. "That's just a statement of law and that law needs to be adhered to." One of the laws that Mr Goiran said should have applied to the 27 babies is legislation requiring their deaths to be reported to the Coroner. Coronial inquests go begging

Despite the 27 babies being born with signs of life and admissions from the government that medical staff did not attempt to resuscitate them, none of the deaths were reported to the WA Coroner for investigation. Mr Goiran said this would be a focus of debate in parliament when the government brought on an amendment to the WA Coroner's Act in the Legislative Council. "I still would like to see the babies getting the normal standard of health care, because the Coroner only gets involved if there's a death, but I want to avoid the death," he said. "But if there is going to be a death, then surely the Coroner has to investigate to make sure that these Western Australian citizens received the same standard they were entitled to.

"Now sometimes a premature baby dies, and that's sad, but it could happen, and if the Coroner deems that nothing could be done, then we mourn the loss of that life and we move on." Mr Goiran said he had correspondence from the Coroner's Court explaining that a death was only reportable if it was "unnatural, unexpected or violent, or resulted directly or indirectly from injury". Call for new laws to protect babies born alive The petition calls for significant law reform to protect the rights of babies born alive after late-term abortions, a notion Mr Goiran has backed. "The truth is, law reform shouldn't be necessary because that is already the state of the law," he said.

"But it's clearly not being enforced, so in the absence of it being enforced I think we need to have it explicitly placed in legislation so it's heightened in the minds of the health practitioners, of the child protection officers, the Department of Health and the Coroner. "Then we might find the restoration of the rights of these individuals." Mr Goiran also called for laws ensuring the government department now responsible for child protection was notified of a live birth. "My view is that there is no Western Australian child more at risk than a child in that situation, in that room, unable to speak for themselves, and surrounded by people who, understandably, have multiple conflicts going on," he said. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video

"Surely the Department of Child Protection has to be involved there. "Who else is going to speak for them? They can't speak for themselves, someone has to speak for them." The government response In a response to the petition released by the Legislative Council committee considering launching an inquiry into the deaths, Health Minister Roger Cook said he appreciated "views on termination of pregnancy can be very strong", but he would not be recommending a review or inquiry. "In WA, there are strict governance processes in place for the management of abortions," he wrote.

"The service is provided in accordance with the legal requirements set out in section 334 of the Health Act 1911 (WA) and also in accordance with the guidelines for the provision of safe abortion for women provided by the World Health Organisation. "For this reason I will not be recommending a review on the process or an inquiry into individual cases." In June, 2017, the government refused to table a report on "induced abortions" of "gestation 20 weeks or more" because it contained confidential medical information. WAtoday asked the government to respond to a number of questions in relation to the deaths of the 27 babies. Loading

But a spokesman for the North Metropolitan Health Service, which includes King Edward Memorial Hospital, said a clinician from the Women and Newborn Health Service was not available to answer questions in time for the publication of this article without causing "more distress" by cancelling appointments. "While I do understand and agree with the importance of media and public interest in the issue, the subject is not necessarily going away or likely to change within a few days," he said. Do you know more about this story? Email Nathan Hondros.