Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

This meeting has been convened to consider Committee Stage of the Health (Termination of Pregnancy Services) (Safe Access Zones) Bill 2023. The primary objective of the Bill is to protect persons' access to lawfully available healthcare services and to protect their decision to access termination of pregnancy services. In addition, the Bill will protect healthcare providers involved in the termination of pregnancy services. The Bill will achieve these objectives by prohibiting persons from engaging in certain conduct in safe access zones. In its pre-legislative scrutiny, the committee strongly supported the measures contained in the Bill in principle. The meeting will end not later than 12.30 p.m.

Members are reminded of the long-standing parliamentary practice 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. I remind members that they must be physically present within the Leinster House complex in order to participate in this meeting. In this regard, I ask that any member participating via MS Teams to confirm that he or she is on the grounds of the Leinster House campus prior to making his or her contribution. I also remind members that should a division be called, they must physically come to the committee room in order to vote.

I welcome the Minister for Health, Deputy Stephen Donnelly. There are a total of three amendments, tabled in the names of Deputies Cullinane and Shortall. I invite the Minister to make his opening remarks.