OK - this is my attempt - if someone can post me a quick link to some homebirth safety stats that would be t'riffic and I'll copy and paste to the relevant para.

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Dear Nicola

I did not have a homebirth with my daughter and fully intend my next birth to be in a private hospital with my lovely private obstetrician.

That is my choice.

However, I fully support the rights of women in Australia to give birth at home with a private midwife. Thanks to your legislation, this will soon become impossible.

When our feminist predecessors have fought so hard for women to be able to have choices in most areas of their lives now, why take away such a basic choice? Why ensure that women have no practical alternative to birthing their baby in a hospital? Why interfere with a basic woman's right to give birth where she chooses?

Of course, there probably won't be too much of a public reaction and I imagine you won't lose too many votes because the general public will fall for the usual lies when it comes to homebirth about it not being safe.

You and I both know that even a cursory glance at the statistics shows this is not the case. Homebirth IS safe.

Australia always seems to lag behind. It's taken years for us to get maternity pay and now, while countries such as New Zealand, the UK and Holland are encouraging women to give birth at home, we are effectively banning it.

Sorry, but that makes absolutely no sense to me.