Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I too am glad to have the opportunity to speak on the Bill. All present recognise that organ and tissue donation is a service that saves lives, improves the quality of life and has cost benefits for the health service. All Members know people who have had the benefit of organ donations. Indeed, my late uncle donated his body to medical science. There are many people who are affected in that way.

Bills like this one have a long gestation but they have to be tightly couched because there can be room for ambiguity. The most significant aspect of the legislation is the introduction of a new opt-out system of consent to organ donation. Under the proposed changes, the organs of deceased individuals will be donated, where possible, unless it can be shown that the deceased did not consent to the use of his or her organs. It is very important that the wishes of the deceased are fully accepted, incorporated and implemented without fear or favour.

That is vital. I, too, totally abhor what went on in various hospitals, including Cork University Hospital, in respect of the incineration of babies' bodies. It was shocking and horrendous. We are all talking about this tonight and want to do so, but nobody looks at the staggering and shocking number of abortions carried out in this country and what happens to the bodies of the babies who are slaughtered in the womb. We know the horror stories that go with this. There are thousands of cases. Even during Covid, when you could not get into a hospital if you were dying, you could get in for an abortion. The number dipped only slightly. This is horrific, as far as I am concerned. Obviously, the mother consents or is persuaded or otherwise, but we cannot just worry about what happens to miscarried babies on the one hand when that is happening on the other, maybe in the same hospital.

The proposed legislation, we are told, will facilitate the creation of an opt-out register. In the event that a deceased individual has registered their wish not to become an organ donor on the register, the deceased's organs will not be transplanted and the deceased's next of kin will not be consulted. That is very important. While one can opt in, it is very important to have an opt-out provision if somebody does not want to have organs donated. We must respect people's wishes. The spouse will be the next of kin, but where there are siblings of equal balance there will be difficulties also. Therefore, it is not simple, or anything like it. We would not want to be proceeding glibly. Under the existing system, the decision rests with the next of kin, even where the deceased person has an organ donor card or has indicated a wish to be an organ donor on his or her driving licence.

The overhaul, in practice, aims to improve the State's rate of organ donation. Currently, you are three times more likely to require a transplant than to be an organ donor. That is a worry when people are looking for transplants. In some cases, there may be great excitement and a sense of hope when people are called but sometimes it does not work. The donated organ might not be suitable or might not take. It can take a long time to settle. We live in hope and expect medical science but we do not need any ambiguities in legislation like this. We have to have it copper-fastened, tight, clear-cut and correct for anybody implementing it.

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