Arena refused to apologise, arguing that she hadn't made any statements alleging criminal conspiracies. She read a "statement of regret" to the Council instead, a compromise that angered the Government but attracted enough support from Independents and individual Coalition MPs to avoid suspension. Arena stood for re-election in 1999 under the name of a new party, the "Franca Arena Child Safety Alliance". She was soundly defeated, receiving a mere 0.4 percent of the popular vote, and immediately announced her retirement from political life. In 2002, Arena published an autobiography entitled, "Franca: my story". In it, she describes how finding out that both her sons are gay sparked a deep depression, during which she contemplated suicide.