Joe Higgins (Dublin West, Socialist Party) | Oireachtas source

There is powerful prima facie evidence that the ethos of one church in this State was applied in order to deny Savita Halappanavar a life-saving medical termination in respect of an unviable pregnancy. Will the Tánaiste see to it that the Minister for Health immediately puts forward an emergency statutory instrument to instruct all hospitals that no woman's life should be put in jeopardy as a result of the ethos of one church applying in any hospital? The Tánaiste promised that a debate will take place in the Dáil in respect of this terrible tragedy but did not provide a timescale in that regard. In order to show the depth of their feelings on this matter and at less than 24 hours' notice, some 2,000 people gathered outside Leinster House last night.

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