Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I congratulate Deputy Howlin on bringing forward this legislation on behalf of the Labour Party. I welcome the fact that the Minister for Health has indicated he will not be opposing it. His contribution was very constructive in engaging with what the Labour Party is trying to achieve, namely, to ensure that false information is not given to women in the extremely vulnerable situation of trying to make a very difficult decision in circumstances of being pregnant without intending it. They, therefore, have to consider all the options available to them and all the circumstances of their lives and those of the people around them. If any of us were to think of what it is like to be in that situation, the last thing we would need would be to be lied to by being given information that was not correct. The two previous speakers have described the kind of information that is given. The information that particularly upset me, as a mother and a woman, is the idea that a woman might go on to abuse her own children because she has had an abortion. That is an extraordinarily offensive thing to tell any woman and something that would be deeply worrying to a woman who might believe it to be true. It is extraordinarily dangerous to give that kind of information to a woman, as it is to suggest that she might somehow be more likely to get cancer in later life if she has an abortion.

We are not seeking to direct people as to what decision they should make but to ensure that the information they are given is accurate and that they will not be told that having an abortion is going to have an effect, particularly as there is absolutely no evidence to suggest that the latter might be the outcome. That is why we want to ensure that such rogue pregnancy agencies are completely outlawed. That is the urgency of Deputy Howlin’s point in amending the legislation to include rogue pregnancy agencies in the Bill and, therefore, that, under the terms of the Bill, anybody who sets themselves up to give advice in respect of crisis pregnancies cannot give false advice and must adhere to certain standards and codes of practice.

We recognise the points the Minister made - he made them well - about the various structural difficulties that would have to be overcome to regulate any profession. We welcome the fact that he has said he is willing to work with Deputy Howlin and the party and other interested Members because they are seriously concerned about this issue as well. We also welcome the fact that the Minister indicated that he will review the Regulation of Information (Services outside the State for Termination of Pregnancies) Act 1995 as part of his response in addressing the concerns that have arisen. As Deputy Howlin pointed out, this Bill concerns “act information”, the very precise information about where a woman can go in Britain. It is not the broader kind of information that women often look for when they are initially faced with the shock of being pregnant when they did not expect to be. While we welcome the review the Minister has announced, our Bill addresses the broader issues of information.

I also thank the various bodies which have assisted us, including the Irish Family Planning Association, IFPA. There has been a need to address this for a long time. The two journalists who exposed what was going on brought the matter to public attention. I commend Sinead Ahern, who went undercover and managed to expose what was happening. This was done because of a genuine concern that we do not want any woman to have to go through this or be given that kind of false information. Different opinions will probably be expressed in this debate in the context of the general issues of repealing the eighth amendment and people’s views on abortion. I, too, would stress that even if the false information was going to direct a woman the other way, it should not be given to her. Nobody should be given false information, whatever the motivation for it. The information has to be factual and true.

I welcome that we openly debate these issues regularly. We have had debates in this House about the repeal of the eighth amendment and the need to have a referendum. There was a time when it was extremely difficult to debate any of these issues in any kind of logical or non-abusive way. I well remember in 1983 and 1995, when some very nasty and vindictive people abused those who argued the case for the right to travel and to have accurate information. We have matured as a society in the way we debate these issues and that is to be welcomed. I hope that when we get to debate the repeal of the eighth amendment, after the Citizens' Assembly makes its recommendations, we will have a civilised and respectful debate. I would be surprised if Members oppose the Second Stage of this Bill because it only seeks to ensure that information is accurate. It does not seek to change people’s views on the substantive issue. It is very specific about the giving of accurate information and the outlawing of rogue agencies set up to mislead because of the points of view of those who established them.

I hope that people on all sides, of whatever view, will support the legislation we are putting forward. We want to list crisis pregnancy agencies in the primary legislation to ensure that we can have action as quickly as possible on this issue in order that, in the immediate or near future, no woman will be placed in the situation Deputy Burton described of being met in a car park, or anywhere else, and given inaccurate information when she is at a particularly vulnerable time in her life and making a very big decision. I hope that Members on all sides will support this Bill.

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