Jim Walsh (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 2:

In page 21, between lines 29 and 30, to insert the following:“(3) Where the pregnant mother of an unborn child dies and that death results in the death of the unborn child, the Superintendent Registrar in whose registration area where the death occurred, must register the death of that unborn child.”.”.

An addition to that amendment would be that the Bill would abolish the definition of stillbirth and replace it with a definition of unborn children to include stillbirths, to allow for registration in the register of deaths.
The Minister of State will be familiar with the general issue, as are many here. There have been many instances when a pregnant woman has died or been tragically killed in an accident. In some instances the baby survives and in others it does not. In those sad circumstances where mother and baby expire, we want some way that the family can ensure the baby’s life is recognised on the death certificate. This has been discussed in the Lower House and there have been parliamentary questions on the issue. Last February the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection said in a reply:

While understanding that the loss this family suffered is a tragic one it would not be workable to establish and maintain a separate register of deaths in such cases. It is not intended, therefore, to amend the Civil Registration Act, 2004 to allow for the registration of deaths without a medical certificate or a coroner’s certificate stating the cause of death.

Since February a specific case, which clearly highlights the need for this amendment, has been brought to the Minister’s attention and she has met the grandfather and other relatives of a child who died in such circumstances. I know she has seen a photograph of the child which the Minister of State also has seen. In this case a young mother was tragically killed in an accident and her daughter of seven months gestation was dead when taken from her mother’s body. The baby’s name was Molly Enright and the coroner issued a certificate of fact of death.
I and others in the Oireachtas have been particularly touched by this case and the need to have it addressed. The response I received from the Registrar General states that when a death occurs, it is registered on foot of a certificate of cause of death supplied by a medical practitioner. Where a death is referred to a coroner, the death is registered by a registrar on foot of a coroner’s certificate. He said that the coroner’s certificate, a copy of which we had sent to him, was an interim certificate of the fact of death. It is interesting that the certificate does not in any way mention that it is interim. It is also interesting that a certificate of cause of death supplied by a medical practitioner would be sufficient to have the death registered. The certificate of fact of death which the Registrar General describes as interim does give the cause of death. There may a technical impediment but not a substantive one to registering these births. The baby’s grandfather, David Walsh and her aunt, Hilary, are here and they are campaigning strongly. They feel this is an injustice to the memory of Molly who, unfortunately, was involved in this accident when she was in her mother’s womb.
Section 28 of the Civil Registration Act 2004, which we are amending here, provides for the registration of stillbirth and the Act states “ 'stillborn child' means a child who, at birth, weighs not less than 500 grammes or has a gestational age of not less than 24 weeks and shows no sign of life”. I am not sure about this baby’s weight but she meets the other criteria because she had reached a gestational age of 29 weeks or seven months. I appeal strongly to the Minister of State to consider these amendments. They are tabled for a good reason. I am open to the Minister of State’s views on the parameters around them. These very sad circumstances, particularly where there is evidence of the baby’s having been taken from the mother when she was dead, are akin to a stillbirth. It is hard to see a major difference other than the cause of death. That is why these two amendments have been tabled. I look forward to hearing the Minister of State’s response and I hope he can give them serious consideration.
Today the child’s grandfather and his daughter and sister-in-law, who are with him, spoke to the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection who was sympathetic and said she would take another look at this case. I encourage the Minister of State to make a positive response and I hope we can agree to include either the wording I have tabled or another wording that better fits the legal requirement. I urge the Minister of State and the other side of the House to subscribe to the principle behind the amendment.