Lynn Ruane (Independent) | Oireachtas source

It is very important for people to understand the difference between paternalism, feminism and how different they are. I am infuriated at the idea that because of certain demographic qualities, women somehow would not have the ability to consent to what they do with their lives. If we stretched our minds that far, we would realise what feminism really is when it comes to women's capacity to consent to what they do or do not in their lives, regardless of their socioeconomic background. I would like to touch a bit more on what informed consent looks like, regardless of the context of a woman's life, her situation or her circumstances, or whether she does or does not want to be compensated in entering into a surrogacy agreement. Could we discuss what informed consent looks like, the differences between informed consent and assessments of capacity to consent?