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

I have spoken already on this topic. I will make a few more points today and hopefully get a better balance in the Chamber. Many, including Oireachtas Members and my constituents, will hopefully know that I am against the repeal of the eighth amendment. I was there in 1983. It was a divisive campaign but, luckily, we live in a democracy and the democratic decision was taken. We had a Supreme Court decision two days ago and it highlighted for me the importance of the eighth amendment in this country and the amount of lives saved. I am concerned with the way we are moving forward. While some say it should have been started before now, there seems to be an effort now to rush the process through to get everyone in the electorate on board because people feel that they can take for granted the electorate in various quarters - that is to say students - but I assure Members that there are many students who are against the repeal of the eighth amendment. Do not get carried away and think that any sector of society is under control.

I respect everyone's views. What happens in here is that we get various organisations being criticised. This morning, the church was being castigated. It has no form of defence in this Chamber which is a bit worrying in a way. It was accountable for issues which happened and should not have happened but one cannot mix all those issues up with this current issue. As everyone has acknowledged today and over the last months when talking about it, it is an important issue. Much was made of International Women's Day yesterday and I commend all those who participated in the celebration of 100 years of women voting. I too acknowledge that many issues relating to women still need to be addressed but I see things improving greatly. Women's representation in the Dáil is not great but I know from involvement in other sectors that there are many great women at the fore of some of the major companies in this country, such as Glanbia and FBD Insurance. I am on the Joint Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport where the head of the National Transport Authority, a lady, came before us, as did the head of the Road Safety Authority, a lady. Do not feel that we have been shy in acknowledging the role of women. Any women I deal with are able to fight their own corner. I wish them the best.

What we have here is the issue of the foetus, of the unborn, who do not have a say or a means of fighting their corner. On page 11 of today's Bill digest is the line "legislate to address termination of pregnancy, any rights of the unborn and any rights of the pregnant woman" and that Article 40.3.3° should be repealed. That is why I am here today. I felt strongly about it. I watched much of the proceedings on my iPhone and, during the day, all but one or two Deputies have steamrolled the issue of the repeal of the eighth amendment. One would think that 99.9% of people are in favour of repealing the eighth amendment. The impression that one would get from this Chamber today is that there is an overwhelming majority. It concerned me. I have to apologise for a few colleagues who could not be here today. They would love to be but because of the prevailing circumstances and short notice, they were not able to be here today to speak on behalf of the retention of the eighth amendment.

We talk about giving women recognition. While I said things are slow, during the last 12 months as a Dáil we have extended parental leave rights to the husband. The husband must have a part to play with the newborn as well and in the creation of the newborn. As a man, I feel no problem in speaking here even though I am single. Talking to other people, it is felt that the man plays no role. I respect the rights of women. Health issues need to be addressed. While I will put my hand up and say that I did not read their reports entirely, from what I have seen I do not think the Citizens' Assembly or for that matter the Joint Committee on the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution took on board alternative proposals or suggestions regarding what could be done to avoid total repeal of the eighth amendment. I say that because it is ironic that the Minister, in his deliberations today, is rushing to improve matters in his speech this morning. He said:

We have published Ireland’s first ever national maternity strategy. The Health Service Executive, HSE, has developed national standards for bereavement care following pregnancy loss and perinatal death and bereavement teams are being established in each maternity unit. The Health Information and Quality Authority, HIQA, now has national standards for safer, better maternity services. Every woman from every corner of Ireland should expect and be able to access the maternity services she needs. Our priorities for 2018 include improving quality and safety, developing community midwifery teams and increasing access to anomaly scans.

There is mention of other issues. Why were these proper supports and advisory services not in place before now? These things are a chance to work for the betterment of those who find themselves pregnant, perhaps in an unwanted situation. Would I be in agreement with the 12 weeks? I am not in agreement with anything but just criticising some of the things.

Just because other counties provide for abortion before 12 weeks' gestation does not mean we have to follow suit. We are members of the EU but there is much legislation and many services in other countries that we do not have in Ireland. Rather than making comparisons, we should be able to stand on our own. The people of this country have been good at making known their decisions.

The Government must think of the impact of this legislation on the youth of the future. If the eighth amendment is repealed and further legislation in this regard is enacted at the end of the year, it will lead to a cull of the youth of the future. There will be fewer young people as a result of this legislation and I do not know, therefore, how the Government can say it is thinking of them. It is more or less telling an unborn he or she will not be here in the future.

As regards conditions such as foetal abnormality, I refer to the comments of Sabina Higgins, who said it is an outrage against women that in the case of foetal abnormality a person should be made to carry the baby to term. Kathleen Rose, the daughter of Tracy Harkin, has trisomy 13, which is one such condition. Will there be a rush job in such cases? If such a condition shows up, will the woman be straight off to an abortion clinic? The child may suffer no problems resulting from the condition after he or she is born. There could be minor difficulties but such people can still live and enjoy life.

I have been to so-called mass of the angels funerals, seen small coffins carried by the mother or father to the graveyard and witnessed how emotional the parents are because of the premature death of a baby. Such babies must have had a life. Does life start after two days, eight weeks or 12 weeks? I admit that no one has been able to give a straight answer to that question and I am still open minded in that regard. However, I believe that life is present within the first few weeks after conception.

As regards walking away from responsibility, people being able to access abortion pills online is a manifestation of global interference in our society. Similar issues such as cyber-bullying and the age of consent in regard to accessing mobile phones and so on have recently arisen. That age of consent in Ireland is likely to be 13 rather than 16 because we cannot beat the system put in place by the companies that provide the technology. It worries me that we would acquiesce to such a problem. More care facilities are needed.

I am delighted to speak on the issue of the eighth amendment and I will be against its repeal. I was a candidate for election in 2016 and one of the biggest commitments I made during that campaign under the name of Fianna Fáil was that I would not support the repeal of the eighth amendment. However, with all due respect to my party, I now speak as an individual because of the decision by my party not to make a political statement on the issue.

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