Jerry Buttimer (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This is the tenth session of the Joint Committee on Health and Children dealing with the heads of the protection of life during pregnancy Bill. I remind all members that we should be temperate and moderate in the phraseology, terminology and in the language we use. I ask members to please be conscious of time as well.

I very much welcome our expert panel of witnesses for this session, Professor William Binchy, Dr. Maria Cahill, Mr. Frank Callanan and Mrs. Justice Catherine McGuinness. You are all very welcome to our hearings and I thank you for attending. I remind members that all four of our expert witnesses are voluntarily giving of their time to be here today to assist us in the analysis of the heads of the Bill and I thank them for that most sincerely.

Before we commence, I remind witnesses and members regarding privilege. Witnesses are protected by absolute privilege in respect of the evidence they are to give to the committee. However, if you are directed by the committee to cease giving evidence in respect of a particular matter and you continue to do so, you are entitled thereafter only to qualified privilege in respect of your evidence. You are directed that only evidence connected with the subject matter of these proceedings is to be given and you are asked to respect the parliamentary practice to the effect that, where possible, your should not criticise or make charges against a person or persons or an entity by name or in such a way as to make him or her or it identifiable. Members are reminded of the long-standing parliamentary practice or ruling of the Chair to the effect that they should not comment on, criticise or make charges against a person outside the Houses or an official either by name or in such a way as to make him or her identifiable. With that, I will allocate 12 minutes to each of our opening speakers. Professor Binchy, you may begin.