Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I wish to share time with Deputies Kathleen Funchion and Richard Boyd Barrett.

Prior to discussing the Bill , the legal issues involved or the arguments that may come up against it, we should pause to consider what is a fatal foetal abnormality. It is important to do this, not least because we are discussing legislation on this issue, but because there is a serious lack of information about exactly what we are discussing. I have seen it in the e-mails I am receiving and I am sure all Members have received the same e-mails. I have heard it in some of the arguments being made against this Bill, but most of what I have heard is a gross distortion of the facts. These fatal foetal abnormalities are not, as some of the e-mails suggest, "babies with disabilities." Down syndrome or cleft palates are not fatal foetal abnormalities. These are not what we are discussing, and shame on those who try to muddy the waters and pretend that we are.

Many Irish women and their partners are informed each year that the foetuses they are carrying are suffering from conditions which make the foetus incompatible with life. Such an incompatibility can stem from a variety of medical conditions which can be diagnosed at various stages during the pregnancy. These conditions mean a foetus will not develop to a point at which it is able to live outside the womb. Depending on the condition and individual circumstances, the foetus may die during pregnancy or may survive until moments after the birth. It does not mean that the foetus will have a lifelong disability or an impaired life. It is unfortunate that we have to keep repeating this. It means the foetus is incompatible with life.

It is also important to highlight the process. Medical practitioners, consultants and experts in this field provide their patients with full details of the condition and the statistics regarding any possibility of survival. Parents are fully informed. They are given full information and this allows them, as responsible people, to make the decision about continuing with the pregnancy. It is important to clarify this.

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Passing this legislation, enabling terminations in these circumstances, does not mean that women are under any obligation to terminate their pregnancies. They will be under no duress to take any action they do not feel is appropriate. There will be a choice. Women will choose to navigate these tragic circumstances in different ways. What this legislation will do is give them one more option.

We know from hearing the first-hand experiences of groups such as Termination for Medical Reasons, TFMR, of women who have had to deal with a fatal foetal abnormality diagnosis and of the doctors and nurses who work with these people that the woman's suffering is compounded by the fact that when she makes the tough decision to terminate her pregnancy, she is made to feel like a criminal in her own country-----

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