Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity) | Oireachtas source

I want to invoke the name of Savita, as others have, as well as the Citizens' Assembly. There is no doubt that only for the strong pro-choice message that the Citizens' Assembly delivered politicians in here would not have gone as far as they were forced to go. We should register who delivered the "Yes" given the gender-quake and youth-quake that took place on Friday. Among female 18 to 24 year olds there was a 94% increase in voting compared to the 2016 general election. There was an increase in women voting in every age and category but it was particularly evident among young people. They persuaded others and other generations to fall in with a new message.

I never doubted we could have this resounding message. The battle was not winning the referendum; the battle was getting a referendum granted from the Dáil over the past five years. Once it got into the hands of ordinary people I had faith that we could persuade them why this change was necessary. There is a danger that we could see a re-writing of history to the effect that politicians going on a journey delivered this change. Actually, it derives from the grassroots movement that has built up, especially since the death of Savita.

It was not a quiet revolution, as the Taoiseach informed the world, it was a noisy and boisterous one. People went on strike, marched and took civil disobedience actions in a relentless fashion to force the issue onto the political agenda. The socialist left in the Dáil was the only reflection of the movement taking place for a long time and until recently. The Taoiseach has now appealed to people to stay involved, albeit it could be a dangerous message for him to give out. I agree that people should stay mobilised until we win free contraception and proper and objective sex education. The Solidarity Bill should now be progressed. There are also other issues relating to the separation of church and State.

What about the housing crisis? I appeal to people to stay involved to tackle those issues and to continue to mobilise to call the Government out in the same way we did on repeal. I will be going to the North on Thursday to support the abortion pill bus being organised by ROSA. The next step is to legalise abortion in the North.

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