Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Prior to this referendum campaign, many people did not know of the existence of abortion pills, much less the frequency with which Irishwomen were ordering them online and consuming them with absolutely no medical supervision. The Department of Health estimates that every day three women and girls consume these abortion pills. It is a story that has featured but has not been openly expressed in the public domain in the course of this campaign, not least because the consumption of the pills carries with it a potential criminal sanction of 14 years' imprisonment.

This morning I had the pleasure of meeting Ms Elaine Bedford, who is from Killester in Dublin. She has now stepped into the public light to tell her story and that of her daughter, Kate. Kate was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at the age of seven. As she got older, she suffered from polycystic ovaries and was prone to infection. From the age of 11, when she hit puberty, she was always warned against unplanned pregnancy because of her diabetes. In late 2016, Kate became very ill. Her mother tells me that she spent three days and nights in intensive care at Beaumont Hospital. She recovered from that. The following year, she fell pregnant. It was not a planned pregnancy. At that stage, Kate was 25 years of age. She was frightened. She felt cornered and snookered and believed she had very few, if any, options. She decided on abortion pills. Elaine recounted today, in the most graphic detail, the experience of her daughter consuming these pills at home alone. She said Kate took the tablets at home, was in agony and was bleeding. Kate seemed to be coming in and out of consciousness and Elaine could not lift the telephone to tell the doctor because Kate was terrified of that. Elaine said this hell continued for three days, with pain and bleeding. Kate's boyfriend and her mother took shifts to look after her. Elaine told me she will never forget the fear and panic in her daughter's eyes. She said that no mother should ever have to see that fear in her child's face.

Kate is not alone, as we all know. Women take these pills alone, scared and in silence. They do so knowing that the eighth amendment prevents them from gaining access to the medical care they need. The result is women bleeding in their beds unable to seek help, daughters pleading with their mothers not to call the doctor out of fear, and loved ones watching on wondering how bad the situation might get. Nobody should ever be left in that position. I am sure the Taoiseach will agree with me. I hope everybody in the Dáil agrees with me on this point. I ask the Taoiseach to speak to Elaine, Kate and the women and girls who will consume abortion pills today.

See this speech in context