Maureen O'Sullivan (Dublin Central, Independent) | Oireachtas source

As the motion states, there is no doubt that successive governments have failed to legislate on this matter. We have had referenda, Supreme Court cases, papers and Oireachtas groups, but no decision. The dithering, procrastination and kicking to touch must come to an end because failure to legislate has been detrimental. That is not to take from the excellent maternity services, as has been acknowledged. In the majority of cases mothers and babies leave hospitals in good health.

I am basically reiterating what I said during the debate on Deputy Clare Daly's Bill, which I supported. In response to numerous e-mails I received on the topic, I say that I do not agree with abortion on demand. Some people do not like that term, but what I understand by it is an abortion clinic where a woman can go in and have an abortion at any stage in a pregnancy for any reason, and I do not agree with that. However, I am conscious that there are women who have left this jurisdiction to go to another one to have an abortion. I respect their decision while I do not agree with it.

In the real world we know that the intervention, abortion, termination or whatever one wants to call it, is needed. If a woman who has been raped or subjected to incest makes the decision that she does not want to continue with the pregnancy, she needs to be supported. Such women are in a sufficiently traumatic situation without having to travel outside this country for that.

There is a need for legal clarity and legal decisions on the case we are discussing where there is a direct threat to the life of the unborn or the mother so that everybody involved can be protected. I know of a case where a woman went ahead with the pregnancy when she knew she was going to lose her life. Equally that must be protected, as must the other situation. The same is true of the medical teams involved.

The report of the expert group must be published as soon as possible and we need a very frank and candid debate. Regarding the investigation in Galway, serious errors of judgment have been made and it is hard to believe, when there was so much goodwill to find out exactly what happened in a dignified way, that such mistakes were made before the investigation even began. A lovely young woman has lost her life and at the end of the day her husband, parents, family and friends will be without her company for the rest of their lives. We owe it to her and to other women in that situation not to allow that happen again.

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