Paul Bradford (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I empathise with the concerns of Senator Ó Domhnaill. Regrettably, I must say that the removal of sections 58 and 59 of the 1861 Act will not bring about a fundamental change. Rather, the passing of the Bill will provide for a different type of culture. This is the matter that we will reflect upon with regret in years to come. After this legislation is passed, the sections are repealed and we move onto another issue, everyone inside and outside the House will need to reflect on why 4,000 to 5,000 Irish women go to Britain for abortions every year, why some others have abortions in Ireland and how we can deal with this problem from financial and societal perspectives. This challenge will face us all.

Without being overly repetitive, this is possibly the only so-called health care provision that will be introduced on a limited basis. That we as legislators are doing this is our public concession to the fact that we are doing something that we know to be wrong. We do not introduce limited heart surgery or hip replacement or limited medication or vaccination programmes. We only introduce limits on a matter that we know to be fundamentally wrong. That we all deem this to be limited legislation shows us what we actually think of the process of abortion as a solution to problems.

The Minister provided his reasons in the Lower House. The health committee debated why these sections should be repealed. Some, such as my friends across the way, believe that a repeal will lessen the protection of the unborn, but the legislation as a whole and the culture change that it will bring about will be the major problems facing us. As such, we must think long and hard about how to respond to the legislation.

While there is a profound division in the House on the legislation and what is behind it, there must be a unity of purpose in the future. I hate to use the phrase "going forward". We must determine what additional supports can be provided to people who view abortion as their only way forward. Tragically, history has shown that it is not a way forward.