Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I think this is different to some of the other concerns in this section. As the Minister described it, I became more concerned. He described the word "avert" as very hardline. The Minister spoke of avoiding, preventing, stopping or turning aside. I am worried, as other Senators are, about many scenarios. I refer to the example of an 80% risk of serious harm that is going to be reduced to a 20% risk of serious harm. Will that be considered as acting "to avert" the risk of serious harm? I ask that because it is not stopping it but it is substantially reducing it. There are a few scenarios like that and other areas mentioned include mental health. I refer to there being serious harm. If a doctor takes an action in such a situation, the harm still happens and he or she is not seen to have averted serious harm, will that doctor be vulnerable?

While it may seem that we are being pernickety on the details of these words, what makes it much more severe is something that not many people expected. I am talking about the element of criminal sanction and criminalisation. People are fearful about how these terms are going to be interpreted. It is a concrete fear. The word "avert" is harsh in respect of the line that it puts in place. A reasonable proposal, which builds on and develops from a debate in the Dáil, was made by our colleague, Senator Marie Louise O'Donnell. She referred to "substantially mitigate". That is not a very wide framing. I indicate that I may come back to this issue on Report Stage.

I wonder about the perspective of the Minister if the word "avert" is the attachment and if we are to believe that the word "avert" is adequate for the scenarios of which I have spoken. Would, for example, the phrase "avert or substantially avert" be satisfactory? Then we could look to where we are not in a purely absolutist situation in having turned aside a risk of harm. I refer to turning aside in the sense that we will have wrestled with the wheel of the car and then have driven towards what we believe to be a safer route. We cannot, however, guarantee that we have stopped the danger or risk of serious harm. That is the reality of many medical situations. Perhaps that might be something the Minister will consider.