Brendan Griffin (Kerry South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the time allotted to Deputies to make statements on this matter and commend all those Deputies who have availed of the opportunity to do so. I acknowledge that I am another man standing up to speak on a sensitive topic that will never directly affect me. When I use the word "directly", I use it in the context of my own body. On a personal basis, as the husband of an expectant mother, this is a matter about which I feel very strongly and by which I am indirectly affected, as is every man in the country. It should not be forgotten that men are also affected by this matter. As public representatives, we have a duty to speak on this matter and make our views known. Before I go any further, I want to express my sympathy to the women and families affected in any way by this topic and acknowledge that public discussion, be it here in the Dáil or on radio or television, is very painful for many thousands of people throughout the country.

I welcome the report of the expert group and the fact that progress is being made. It has been said that six Governments have ignored this topic and thankfully this seventh Government will not do so, which is very welcome. My understanding is that the legislation on this matter to protect mothers' lives will be brought forward and I would be happy to support it. We need to provide legal clarity to protect the lives of pregnant women in all circumstances, including mental health grounds. It is a very difficult area to legislate for but we must do it. There are 166 Members in this House with probably 166 differing views on the topic. Very few people would have exactly the same views on this matter. It is such a complex health, justice and ethical area that one will never get total consensus but we need to work towards the broadest possible consensus we can find.

While the report of the export group deals with the judgment in the A, B and C v. Ireland case, it does not deal with cases involving rape or incest. These are difficult areas to deal with but we must face up to the reality that it happens on a regular basis. I echo a recent observation made by a colleague, that had it not been for our proximity to the UK this matter would have been dealt with by our Parliament much earlier. It is not acceptable for the country to continue to bury its head in the sand with regard to this issue.

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