Dr. Simon Mills:

I referred in my written submission to a legal fiction arising by reason of a tension between head 19 and heads 2 to 4, inclusive. I used the phrase "legal fiction" as a term of art simply because it is not hard to envisage circumstances in which a termination is carried out under heads 2, 3 or 4 where part of the intention of the procedure is the carrying out of a termination of human life.

That is part of the intention of the procedure. It may not be direct and intentional. It may be indirectly intentional to use other philosophical fictions that are sometimes used. It remains the case, however, although Mr. Paul Brady has observed that an exception is created under heads 2 to 4. I am grateful to him for that observation. It may be that the tension I identified does not exist.

Two matters arise from Deputy Mathews's contribution, in which he accused Mr. O'Connor and me of wordiness but during which, ironically, he never got around to asking a question.