Professor Siobhán Mullally:

It is the norm that there would be provision for a conscientious objection and that is included in the 2013 legislation. That allows for recognition of the right to religious freedom and manifestation of one's religious beliefs but there are limits on that and, therefore, in terms of compliance with European human rights law, including the provisions of the revised European Social Charter and the European Convention on Human Rights, the position has been that where a practitioner has a conscientious objection, there is an obligation to ensure there is effective referral and access to a non-objecting practitioners, and that procedures are in place to ensure that obligation is met in a timely and transparent way.