Professor Kieran Murphy:

I will try. Deputy Mattie McGrath raises an important point, which is what happens if there is not agreement. It is very important that the members, as legislators, put the interests of the woman at the centre of all they do, which is what the Irish Medical Council does in all its own actions. If there is a disagreement and the woman is unhappy with the outcome of the process, there is a review mechanism within the draft heads of Bill which allows for an appeal process. The council is very supportive of this and would go further. In our submission earlier this morning I outlined that we believe there should be a further appeal process enshrined in the legislation to allow a woman to access an appropriate treatment if she feels this is what she wants to do.

On Deputy Mattie McGrath's comments on the new Medical Council, clearly, as an outgoing member of the current Medical Council, I cannot possibly comment on what the new Medical Council might do. Regarding what Deputy Naughten said, as the Taoiseach and our Minister for Health have said, it is important for doctors to have legal clarity when making clinical decisions. Consequently, it is the Members' role, as legislators, to ensure they can provide that legal clarity to doctors. Once that legal clarity is provided it will be up to other organisations - such as the colleges and the Medical Council, co-ordinated by the Department of Health - to ensure that the guidelines developed based on the legislation are appropriate to ensure that the woman, who is at the centre of all this, is protected.

Regarding the questions from Senator Walsh, I have already dealt with the rationale for a merger of heads 2 and 4. The principle underlying the council's submission is that we want to ensure all women have equal access to a process that will save their lives. That is all I will say, given the time.