Bríd Smith (Dublin South Central, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

I wish to follow up on my earlier comments and questions to the Taoiseach and his statement at the opening of this session. His vision of a shared island is all about canals and bridges, tourism, enterprise, innovation and research.

That is fair enough but we should prioritise health and, in this case, women's health. It must be a source of embarrassment that, having fought a campaign to give women access to full reproductive health that we now find ourselves lagging behind Northern Ireland. I would have thought that the Taoiseach would feel more uncomfortable about that than he does about the review and the attempt for us to change the laws around it. I ask the Taoiseach to comment on whether his discomfort to change the laws is not as important as guaranteeing women access to all healthcare, both North and South.

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