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

Saturday was a momentous day for all the people of the State. Ireland is changing and the old certainties are being challenged. A new and better Ireland is emerging. Saturday was a day when those who had been silenced demanded to be heard. It was a day when we collectively and decisively broke from the past. It was a day when the people said this was our time and our Ireland. It was a day when a substantial majority said in a loud voice that we were compassionate, that we trusted women and that we wanted doctors to act free from the threat of criminal sanction.

I thank and congratulate the Together for Yes group on a magnificent campaign. I also acknowledge the doctors and lawyers who provided their expertise and experience and were listened to. I commend every activist from my party, Sinn Féin, and all others for their hard work across the State. Above all else, the campaign was marked by the women who had come forward to share their personal stories about dealing with tragic circumstances. In that regard, I acknowledge the group Terminations for Medical Reasons that was truly magnificent in its campaigning.

As we progress to legislating for this decision made by the people, our thoughts still remain with all those who have suffered and died as a result of an amendment which should never have been in the Constitution. I sound the name of Savita Halappanavar whom we remember in these times. I express our solidarity with her family and every family which has suffered because of the eighth amendment.

The campaign created a space for Ireland, North and South, to look at the experiences of women. We are the better for it. Their voices have been heard and can no longer be silenced by guilt or neglected by the Government.

4 o’clock

Ireland is changing and this is evident in the vibrant "Yes" campaign headed by women and many young people. I wish to thank them and mark their achievement.

The need and the case for change to protect women and our lives is now unanswerable not only in this jurisdiction but throughout our island. We need Irish law, Irish service provision and Irish regulation to keep our women safe. It is unacceptable to those of us in the South that women and girls would buy abortion pills over the Internet and take them without medical supervision. It is unacceptable to us that they may be fearful of seeking medical assistance should something go wrong due to the threat of criminal sanction. It is equally unacceptable that any woman or girl in the North would be left in those situations. It is completely unacceptable that any of these women or girls are criminalised or hauled before the courts.

The referendum result tells us that Irish norms have changed, that the absolutist position on abortion as a black-and-white issue is gone and that people understand this now in all its complexity. Even those who have a strong moral objection to abortion now understand that, in the complexity of life, women and their doctors have to be free to act, have to be afforded choice and have a right to choice.

The imperative now is to act on the instruction of the people. The result was overwhelmingly definitive, such that I have no doubt the message has been heard loud and clear by Government and all legislators. The imperative comes from the fact that women must be protected. Pregnancy, by definition, is time-sensitive. Every week and every month we fail to enact the legislation, we put our women in the way of danger. Consequently, we must act speedily. We have a history of foot-dragging on the issue of abortion because it is considered sensitive and difficult - I acknowledge that it is. However, if the referendum is to mean anything for legislators and the political system, it is that the days of delay are over and that the time for action is now. Those of us in Sinn Féin recognise that imperative. We maintain the Government cannot delay and must act to bring forward the legislation, and I understand the Government will do so. We will work constructively and diligently with the Government on this matter. We have no problem supporting special sittings during the summer months to ensure we get the legislation right and that we get it passed in a timely fashion. Let us go forward together to ensure this is the first step in creating that new Ireland. As this chapter in our journey to full equality closes, let us look forward to the next one with the same determination and solidarity.

See this speech in context