Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

We listened to citizens, co-operated on an all-party basis and then put a proposal to the people. I confirm what Deputy Martin said. Head 4 in the general scheme refers specifically to viability. It says that terminations will not occur on the grounds of health or risk to the life of the mother if the child can survive outside of the womb. In such cases, doctors will perform an early delivery and give that child all the neonatal support our paediatricians can offer. Once the baby in the womb reaches the point of viability, that is what will be done. Late-term abortions are prohibited and are only permitted in two very rare circumstances. One is in the case of a diagnosis of fatal foetal abnormality as a result of which the child will not survive for long outside of the womb. The second refers to those very rare emergency situations in which doctors have to act and act quickly. Written into that emergency provision in head 5 is a double immediacy test. The doctor needs to be able to act immediately and a termination must be immediately necessary. Those are very rare circumstances and something similar is indeed already provided for in the 2013 legislation.

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