Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak on the debate. It is appropriate that sufficient time has been given to Deputies to express their views. At the outset I want to indicate my own position, which is that I am not in favour of repealing the eighth amendment. I believe it is important that the right to life of the unborn is recognised in the Constitution, which is our primary guiding document. It is a very important principle and is something which should be contained in the Constitution. I acknowledge that it is a very difficult issue and that there are very many difficult cases involved. I also want to acknowledge the work of the committee, which took the time to look into this and to tease out in great detail the various considerations and to hold hearings in the Dáil over many, many weeks. I thank those members who took part in that committee on behalf of the various parties in the Oireachtas and those who spoke at the hearings, as well as the staff who participated. I acknowledge the work those people carried out. One does not have to agree with the outcomes to respect the fact that much work was done and time spent on behalf of the Oireachtas. It is now appropriate that the matter comes back to the floor of the Dáil so that everyone can consider those issues. It is appropriate that the public will ultimately get the opportunity to have their say on what is to happen and what our laws should be. I welcome the fact that so far the debate has been very respectful. I am hopeful that will continue. People can hold differing views, and those views are genuinely held, so it is important that that is respected.

It is important that we allow people to live their lives as they so choose, whether that be according to their own religion or to no religion.

People should have the freedom and the right to go about their daily lives and live them to the full, so long as that does not impinge on the rights of others. As regards abortion, I believe there are two lives to be considered in a pregnancy: those of the mother and the unborn. All countries, even those with liberal termination regimes, recognise in legislation that there are two lives in a pregnancy. All countries have laws which restrict terminations of pregnancy because there is a recognition that two lives are involved. Some countries have more liberal regimes than others but in all cases there is recognition that there are two lives in a pregnancy and that the life of the unborn must be considered. In my view, that should be given the utmost consideration. As all members know, the health and welfare of the mother is paramount but we should also take every appropriate and possible step to ensure the life of the unborn is protected and considered.

The Supreme Court last week clarified that the rights of the unborn are only crystallised in our Constitution in the eighth amendment and are not otherwise explicitly present. It would not be appropriate to do away with that recognition of those rights. There is no doubt that there are difficult cases but the accommodation of such cases should not lead to the withdrawal of the protection of the rights of the unborn from the Constitution and that protection should remain in place.

A decision in respect of the upcoming referendum will be difficult for many people. The approach taken by my party in terms of allowing each Member to vote according to his or her conscience is appropriate and right because this issue is very personal to people. People will question themselves in respect of the referendum and each person can take a very different but genuine view on how he or she will vote on the issue. However, the outcome is likely to be far closer than the polls suggest. For many, it will come down to a choice between keeping the situation as it is or voting for what is likely to be abortion on request up to 12 weeks because the proportion of Members who have indicated in favour of 12 weeks is just short of 50% and if Sinn Féin changes its approach, as has been indicated by its leadership, it is clear that a majority of Members will be in favour of up to 12 weeks. In terms of the campaign and how the public will consider the matter, it is increasingly likely that if the eighth amendment is repealed, a regime will be put in place whereby abortion on request will be allowed up to 12 weeks' gestation.

It is very important that the protection of the unborn continue to be recognised in the Constitution, which is the appropriate place for it, and for that reason I am very much in favour of retaining the eighth amendment and will be voting against repeal.

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