Kevin O'Keeffe (Cork East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

They should have taken on board requests, unless other members said "No". I do not see that recorded. It was the responsibility of the chairperson, supported by the secretariat. The job of the secretariat was to bring evidence before the committee. Several names were proposed by pro-life members and some of these were rejected, contributing further to the imbalance in the perspective presented. Straight away, the committee seems to have been in much trouble.

To go back a step further, I question the formation of the Citizens' Assembly in that its make-up may not have been representative of the opinions, beliefs and views of people. There should have been a better mechanism to pick the people involved. I am not for a minute condemning the integrity of these individuals but it is about where they come from and their beliefs. From what I saw with the deliberations of the Citizens' Assembly, I would go as far as to say that if we had given them the full text of Bunreacht na hÉireann, it would have come back in tatters.

I completely agree with the separation of church and State but I have comments on what has been said in the past number of days. I am a simple man who holds Christian values. I may not be a continual church-goer but I have my beliefs. I went to a diocesan college of Cloyne, St. Colman's College in Fermoy, and we all remember the speech of the former Taoiseach, Deputy Enda Kenny, in the Dáil following the publication of the Cloyne diocesan report. I acknowledge the untold damage that these former clergy did to the church's name. They should have been punished sooner. Every organisation has rotten apples that need to be pulled. In some sporting organisations, some coaches were reprimanded for committing intolerable acts; it brought some sporting organisations to their knees. Every organisation might have bad apples that need to be pulled aside but they should not tarnish the entire organisation.

The Catholic Church is entitled to a view on this matter, as is any other group. We have people who are intent on continually kicking the Catholic Church when it is down but we must not forget those who espouse the true values of the church. I have received representations from other religious organisations that have denounced the report. Let these people air their views without any of the uncalled for condemnation that has come from other sectors of society or politicians who have the privilege to say what they like in this Chamber without fear of repercussion.

I have met a cross-section of people of different ages and status about this matter and there are many different opinions. It is not just about senior citizens. There has been a shout from the left that we must ensure students get a chance to vote. I acknowledge this request and I was a student once but one is entitled to move on in life. I attended Cork Institute of Technology and one could say I was no angel. I was on the periphery of the students' union. I saw people involved in the union who at the time had leftist and socialist views but further on in life, many have views that could be seen as right of centre. College brings that out in students. Those who are 14 or 16 are breaking the law when they have a cigarette or go for a drink. I agree that people should be allowed to vote but this should not be used as a way to get the referendum passed on other people's terms.

There has been much discussion on why abortion should be allowed, such as health grounds, economic and social considerations and incidents of rape and incest. We all abhor rape and incest. Although I do not really know them, I have met in other forums in the company of other politicians people who were born out of rape. They now live a full healthy and hearty life. Some of these people have gone into professions. They are the innocent people.

If I came into the House tomorrow and proposed the death penalty for a rapist or a person who committed incest, the same people here, particularly on the left, would use civil liberties and other issues to condemn me. I respect that women are the big players here. They are the people who carry the unborn and I respect that. They must be given equal treatment. However, looking to the future, are we denying women a chance to come into the world? Are we being selective about what women, and men, will be here in the future? We must give Irish women more support, but I do not see importing England's problem as the solution. We turn a blind eye to that at present. Due to Google, the Internet and other modern technology, we turn our backs. I am not suggesting a complete ban, but perhaps the penalties for people who would do this, which obviously are crimes, should be examined. However, it appears that these conglomerate companies, which provide the Internet and access technology, are the bigger players at present. The Government is even backing down on cybersecurity because these companies have too much power over people's access.

I do not believe Irish people want to see what is put forward here. We must provide better financial measures for single mothers and improve adoption services. We must show true compassion to women in these situations. We must support them in as many ways as possible. At the same time, however, when it comes to bodily autonomy there are two people involved in a pregnancy. A child's heart starts beating at 21 days and we cannot ignore that, whatever the outcome. The United States Republican Senator, Marco Rubio, stated:

The issue of life is not a political issue, nor is it a policy issue, it is a definitional issue. It is a basic core issue that every society needs to answer. The answer that you give to that issue ends up defining which kind of society you have. [...] The right to life is a fundamental one that trumps virtually any other right that I can imagine. Because without it none of the other rights matter. There can be no liberty without life. There can be no Constitution without life. There can be no nation without life. And there can't be other lives without life.

I echo his sentiments.

I hark back to recent comments in the media about politicians being brave when they change from one opinion to another. I respect and acknowledge that. I will not condemn anybody for their beliefs, but I do not wish to have other people condemning those who have a belief. Am I not a brave person for not changing my view?

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