Catherine Noone (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome members and also viewers who may be watching the proceedings - I did not welcome them earlier on - to the Joint Committee on the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution. We will be holding two separate sessions this afternoon and we will first hear a presentation on termination in cases of foetal abnormality from a consultant in maternal foetal medicine. Our second session will be with officials from both the Department of Education and Skills and the Department of Children and Youth Affairs to consider the ancillary recommendations of the Citizens' Assembly.

Before I introduce our first witness today, at the request of the broadcasting and recording services and at the risk of serious repetition, members and visitors in the Public Gallery are requested to ensure that for the duration of this meeting their mobiles are fully off. We have seen that they interfere with the footage. Please be accommodating with that.

I extend on behalf of the committee a warm welcome to our first witness to present to us at this afternoon's meeting, Mr. Peter Thompson, consultant in maternal foetal medicine, at Birmingham Women’s and Children’s Hospital, who will address the issue of termination in the case of foetal abnormality. You are very welcome to this meeting this afternoon and thank you for travelling over to be here.

Before we commence formal proceedings I must begin with some formalities and advise our witness on the matter of privilege. I will go through this quickly. I wish to advise the witnesses that by virtue of section 17(2)(l) of the Defamation Act 2009, witnesses are protected by absolute privilege in respect of their evidence to this committee. However, if you are directed by the committee to cease giving evidence in relation to a particular matter and you continue to so do, you are entitled thereafter only to a 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, you should not criticise or make charges against any person, persons or entity by name or in such a way as to make him or her identifiable.

Members are reminded of the long-standing ruling of the Chair to the effect that they should not comment on, criticise or make charges against a person outside the House or an official either by name or in such a way as to make him or her identifiable.

I now call on Mr. Thompson to make his presentation.