Fidelma Healy Eames (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Indeed. My first question is directed to Mr. O'Connor and Dr. Mills. Are we, as legislators, obliged to legislate for the X case, a Supreme Court judgment that is now 21 years old, given that there is now unanimity among all the psychiatrists, as shown again yesterday, that abortion is not a treatment for a suicidal pregnant woman? Indeed, Dr. Janice Walsh said that there was nothing new in the Bill to improve practice in the case of pregnant women with cancer, which was, of course, the C case.

My next question is directed to the entire panel. Bearing in mind the separation of powers, where does my duty lie as a legislator? I realise that the Government wants us to legislate but where does my duty lie? Am I to be enslaved by a 1992 judgment that is now out of date or am I to give due regard to best practice for pregnant women and the unborn and to reflect section 21.1 of the Medical Council guidelines, which ask me to give due regard to clinical-based research? Can we, as an Oireachtas, satisfy the requirements of the European Court of Human Rights without legislation or by excluding head 4, which is clearly problematic? Indeed, as Dr. Mills acknowledged at the outset, should head 4 survive? If so, what is the way forward that the panellists would propose? Are there other examples of Supreme Court judgments that have not been legislated for? If so, I ask the panellists to list them. Has the Oireachtas acted unconstitutionally for the past 20 years by not legislating for abortion on the grounds of suicide? I ask for a "Yes" or "No" response to that question.