Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The legislation does not provide for termination of pregnancy to be carried out on the grounds of sex, race or disability. The Bill provides for termination of pregnancy to be carried out only in cases where there is a risk to the life or serious harm of the health of a pregnant woman; where there is a risk to the life, or of serious harm to the health, of a pregnant woman in an emergency; where a condition is present which is likely to lead to the death of a foetus either before or within 28 days of birth; and where the pregnancy has not exceeded 12 weeks. Terminating a pregnancy otherwise than in accordance with the provisions of the Bill is an offence which may be prosecuted.

The proposed amendment is entirely unworkable in practice and is designed, in my view, only to stigmatise women in crisis pregnancies by allowing its proposers to suggest that these are their motives. If it were to pass, its only possible intention would be to render termination services practically entirely inoperable requiring, as it does, a doctor to be able to determine a woman's thoughts which she may choose to keep private, and in fact be satisfied as to the absence of those described. This would likely have the effect of creating substantial and unnecessary difficulty for doctors in providing certification. It would make the entire premise of the early pregnancy section of the Bill inoperable.

The strong advice of the Chief Medical Officer is that this amendment must be opposed on this basis and I fully support that medical opinion. It is also my strong view that the proposed amendment is completely out of step with the decision of the people and the recommendations of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution. The legislation, as drafted, reflects the majority view that women in early pregnancy should be able to make their decisions in private with their doctor without being required to give a reason.

This is a case of the political tactic of "let them deny it". There is no ground in this Bill for termination of pregnancy in relation to disability, sex or race. It is not allowed under the provisions of the Bill. A suggestion to the contrary is not grounded in fact or in the medical advice offered to me by the Chief Medical Officer and is a serious deviation from the grounds we extensively debated during the referendum campaign.

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