Paul Singer was due to appear at SkyCity on June 14, but on Tuesday SkyCity cancelled the booking.

Controversial Australian philosopher Peter Singer says he expects to find an alternative venue for his Auckland appearance in June.

Singer was due to appear at SkyCity on June 14, but on Tuesday SkyCity cancelled the booking because of the concerns of disability activists.

The cancellation was a reaction to a Newshub report criticising Singer's past statements about disability, including his belief that parents of profoundly disabled newborns should be allowed to ask doctors to end the child's life.

The Auckland event itself was not focussed on Singer's views on disability. Rather, it was to promote Singer's non-profit The Life You Can Save, which is dedicated to persuading people to donate to life-saving charities in developing nations.

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SkyCity told the event organiser ThinkInc that Singer's views appeared to be contrary to SkyCity's values of "diversity and inclusivity".

Singer, 73, told Stuff he was "surprised and disappointed" by the sudden cancellation.

He had spoken often in New Zealand and had always been welcomed, he said.

Singer said he had noticed a rise in cases of "deplatforming" and "cancellation" around the world, but hadn't expected it from an open and tolerant society such as New Zealand's.

"If this is a sign that things have changed for the worse, it's disappointing."

In the Newshub article, a disability activist said Singer's views about euthanising disabled babies had been used against members of the disability community, and that she and others planned to protest the visit.

Dr Huhana Hickey told Newshub that while Singer had "every right to freedom of speech", she and her fellow activists "have every right to protest and to counter his speech around disability".

On Wednesday, Singer confirmed to Stuff he supported the idea of infanticide in certain circumstances, but said that this was totally distinct from his views about the rights of disabled people more generally.

"They're separate issues. I've always supported the idea that society should make as much accommodation as possible for people with disability."

Singer said he believed society should allocate as many resources as needed to allow disabled people to lead full lives and he supported laws that stop employers from discriminating against disabled people.

His views about infanticide were, by contrast, based on the reality of severe disability in newborns, he said.

He said in neonatal intensive care units, doctors and parents were already routinely required to make life or death decisions about babies based on their future prognosis.

In cases where a profoundly disabled baby is being kept alive only with the help of a respirator, doctors and parents have the option of withdrawing that support and allowing the child to die, and this happens in neonatal wards around the world every day, he said.

Singer said it was not "morally relevant" whether the baby happened to be on a respirator which can be turned off, or the doctor has to take a more active measure to end their life.

If the decision has been made by parents and doctors that the child's prognosis is so terrible it would be better off not living, they should have the option of giving the child an injection to make sure her or she dies peacefully, he said.

Singer said it was disappointing that a speaking tour that was meant to be about the benefits of "effective altruism" has instead become focussed on infanticide.

He said he supported laws that ban hate speech against any group of people but he did not see his views as being in that category.

He said he would be "surprised" if the event organisers, ThinkInc, could not find another venue willing to host his appearance.