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

Saturday was a momentous day for the people of Ireland. We voted overwhelmingly to remove the eighth amendment from the Constitution. We said in a strong and unified voice that we would no longer tolerate Irish women being treated as second-class citizens. We said we trusted women to make the best decisions on their pregnancies and healthcare. We demonstrated the instinctive compassion of the people. We said loudly that we were no longer willing to stand over a system that made exiles of women in crisis. The people led and the politicians followed. By voting "Yes", the people showed us their vision of what they wanted their country to be - progressive, equal, fair and kind. It is important to commend the Citizens' Assembly, as the Taoiseach has done.

I commend the Together for Yes group for the fantastic work it carried out and acknowledge those who have campaigned for 35 years to achieve this result. I also acknowledge those in this House who spoke out on the issue of abortion when it was not easy to do so.

The campaign is now over and the people have spoken. Our attention as elected representatives now turns to the job of enacting legislation. It is crucial that we get this done without delay and that we get it right. I appreciate that there are complexities in meeting the three objectives of passing sound legislation, drafting and agreeing clinical guidelines and enacting medical regulations. This work needs to all happen in tandem. We have to remember that between now and the enactment of legislation, women in crisis will still face the same challenges they did before the referendum was passed. In the interim, as we await the legislation, a positive and necessary step is the immediate repeal of the Regulation of Information (Services Outside the State for Termination of Pregnancies) Act 1995, the abortion information Act. That would allow doctors to make referrals for women and to confer with doctors outside the jurisdiction about the care of women who will still be forced to travel for terminations. Repeal of this Act would at least offer women some degree of support and confidence. By working together constructively, we can pass the necessary legislation promptly. I hope every Member of the Oireachtas will act constructively and will recognise the decision of the people. The people have played their part and now it is up to us as legislators to play ours.

Given the timeframe the Taoiseach has outlined, will he commit to working with us to ensure the 1995 abortion information Act is repealed immediately? In respect of citizens living in the North, can he make a commitment that Brexit will not disrupt access to the services in the way he has described?

See this speech in context