Lorraine Clifford-Lee (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister. I am very happy to have the opportunity to express my commitment to safe access zones. I know that the Minister has a firm commitment to safe access zones.

As we all know, the commitment to safe access zones is contained in the programme for Government. My Government colleagues and I are very supportive of them. I am glad that Deputy Stephen Donnelly is our Minister for Health, particularly on foot of his ongoing and very real commitment to women's healthcare through the free contraception scheme, menopause clinics, endometriosis funding and period poverty and breastfeeding supports. I appreciate his active engagement on the review of the abortion legislation, which is approaching the three-year mark. I know that the Minister is personally committed to reproductive health and rights. It is very good that we all have the opportunity tonight to express our commitment to the expressed will of the Irish people.

As outlined, there is a broad coalition of support for safe access zones. I commend Together for Safety and the coalition of fantastic grassroots groups across the country that are responsible for the drafting of this legislation and making sure that this matter is kept high on the political agenda. It is that grassroots engagement, support and driving of legislative change that gave rise to the repeal of the eighth amendment. It is good to see that these groups are going from strength to strength supporting and encouraging legislative change.

Termination services have, thankfully, been legal in this country for almost three years. It is not acceptable that anybody should be intimidated while accessing health services. It is incredible that people feel they have the right to intimidate and provide an undignified space for people when they access services. Women and pregnant people should be able to access health services without experiencing intimidation, stigma or shame. We have had enough of that in this country to last a lifetime. People need to be able to access services in a private and safe fashion, and with dignity.

We can sometimes forget how far we have come. Recently, the anniversary of the death of Savita Halappanavar took place. We have made great strides since then but we have a way to go. We should always be conscious of how easy it is to slip back from that position.

My colleague, Senator Chambers, and I visited Poland recently. On behalf of the all-party group on sexual and reproductive health and rights, we signed the Warsaw commitment to freedom of expression in Europe, and to the access and support of people's sexual and reproductive rights. At the time, I was struck by the fact that the activists in Poland said to me that a case like Savita's was going to happen and, unfortunately, Izabella, a Polish woman got sepsis and died because of the situation there. I know that everybody here will think about Izabella tonight and about all of the sacrifices that Irish women, and women across Europe, have made to get the rights that we have now.

I am sure there will be many arguments in favour of freedom of expression tonight. I do not think any of these arguments hold weight. The people who seek to vindicate these rights just want to restrict and intimidate others. There is nothing about the freedom of expression. Down though the years, and before we had the debate on repealing the eighth amendment, people attempted to restrict me from expressing my views on this issue. It is those same people who are very concerned about freedom of expression now.

Protests are part of our psyche in Ireland. I am a prolific protester. I have protested with great gusto in the past, but I would never seek to protest outside a medical establishment. These protests are very far-reaching in their impact, not only on the people accessing termination services but also on everybody accessing health services within a particular establishment, the staff and the wider community.

There is significant evidence that large parts of this country do not have adequate termination services and that this is down to the level of protesting that has taken place in some areas. Such a situation is completely unacceptable. Vulnerable women are being impacted by the level of protest in some parts of the country.

I am very glad of the opportunity to discuss this matter and to air of our commitment to establishing safe access zones. We all want to improve the provision of health services. I am glad we can all work together on this issue.