New Pregnancy Bill doesn’t introduce abortion – Breen

THE contentious new Pregnancy Bill doesn’t introduce abortion and doesn’t involve any changes in the legislation, according to Deputy Pat Breen.

 

In fact, Deputy Breen insists the Government is merely “decoding and clarifying” the law by implementing rulings from the Supreme Court and the European Court of Justice.

He also pointed out two referenda that sought to remove the risk of suicide as a possible reason for terminating a pregnancy were defeated.

Furthermore the Fine Gael Deputy hit out against the “misinformation” in the whole abortion debate, including posters that were put up around Ennis about himself and Deputy Joe Carey.

“The Government can’t make any change to the abortion legislation unless it is supported by a majority of the people in another referendum.

“This is a very complex, sensitive issue for all political parties. I have received a huge amount of emails from pro-life people and I have met several genuine pro-life people. I have also taken on-board concerns from people about this issue.

“While I appreciate Catholic bishops are entitled to give their opinion, I don’t think Cardinal Brady should have said deputies should be excommunicated when he was questioned by the media about this issue,” he said.

Senator Tony Mulcahy denied claims by some commentators that his views were being informed by Labour and stressed he had made his mind up on the need to provide legal clarity on this issue a long time ago. He pointed out a lot of people didn’t seem to realise that there is already a provision for a termination in the case of a suicide risk enshrined in the legislation, following the Supreme Court case.

Senator Mulcahy argued the new bill provides more restrictions in terms of legislating for a suicide risk, as the agreement of one obstetrician and two psychiatrists are necessary before a termination of pregnancy could be granted.

He also dismissed calls for a referendum and stressed it is vital that medical practitioners are empowered to make difficult decisions during medical emergencies.

While Fianna Fáil still has not devised a party policy on this issue, Deputy Timmy Dooley said he broadly supports the main thrust of the new bill and hopes his concerns can be addressed by experts in the Dáil’s health committee.

Deputy Dooley added he believes legislation is the only way to address the uncertainty following the Supreme Court and European Court of Justice rulings and provide legal certainty to medical people who seek to act in the best interest of the mother and child.

Stating he is pro-life like the majority of people and is totally opposed to abortion-on-demand, he said most people want to provide some legal certainty when there is a real and substantive threat to the life of the mother in the first instance.

Noting that the proposed removal of the suicide risk was turned down in two referenda, he expressed fears that another referendum could actually result in a more liberal regime being introduced.

Deputy Michael McNamara said the Government couldn’t afford to ignore the Supreme Court ruling and had to introduce this into legislation.

Asked if the new bill is too restrictive or not restrictive enough, he said believes it is no more restrictive than the law allows.

Commenting on the public reaction in Clare, Deput McNamara said believes the silent majority of people want the Government to introduce legislation on this issue.

He confirmed he had received several genuine representations from people who were motivated by a deep sense of faith, which he appreciated.

While Senator Martin Conway supports the bill, he is looking forward to hearing medical and other experts dealing with concerns relating to suicide at the forthcoming three-day Dáil Health Committee.

Once the Government’s expert report on this bill is discussed, Senator Conway said he wouldn’t be surprised to see some more amendments to address legitimate concerns.

With the benefit of hindsight, Senator Conway said it would probably have been more prudent for Enda Kenny not to have made any pledge about abortion before the 2011 General Election considering Fine Gael subsequently failed to get an overall majority.

He said he believed there is a “silent cohort” of people who take a more liberal view in terms of sanctioning a termination in certain medical emergencies and doesn’t believe there is a major public demand for another divisive abortion referendum.

Deputy Joe Carey believes the current bill strikes the right balance between providing protection for the life of the mother in certain exceptional circumstances and the life of the unborn.

Asked about concerns in relation to using the risk of suicide as a reason for abortion, he said the provision of a rigorous process within the legislation involving the agreement of three senior doctors dealt with this issue.

He also disagreed with calls for a referendum, as the Government is not changing the law and declined to comment on pre-Election pledge made by Deputy Kenny.

“I have received a lot of correspondence in relation to this issue. I have met and engaged with a lot of people and am happy to continue dealing with any genuine concerns.

“Dr Mahony, Master of the National Maternity Hospital at Holles Street, has stated that legal clarity must be provided for doctors,” he said.