Frances Black (Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Minister is very welcome to the House. I am proud to be a co-sponsor of the Bill, along with my Civil Engagement Group colleagues. I commend Senator Gavan on introducing the Bill. I also commend Together for Safety on drafting this important legislation and its advocacy for the introduction of safe-access zones.

As the Minister well knows, following the 2018 referendum to repeal the eighth amendment, where two thirds of voters in Ireland voted for free, safe, legal and accessible abortion, there was a commitment to introduce safe-access zones to protect women and pregnant people from harassment while accessing reproductive healthcare. It has become abundantly clear since the referendum decision was legislated for, that women and pregnant people, as well as their healthcare providers, would require protection in law from harassment and intimidation. To grant this protection would not exceed any legislative standard, instead it would merely meet the standard that the then Minister for Health, Deputy Harris, promised, as Senator Hoey outlined.

Speaking at the time, Deputy Harris noted how much legislation is necessary to protect both users and staff from distress and harassment when accessing facilities. Despite that acknowledgement, safe-access zone legislation is still not in place and people continue to be harassed on a daily basis as they access health services to which they have a right.

Legislation on this issue was listed in the 2019 legislative programme and the programme for Government, as well as being listed in the 2021 summer and autumn legislative programmes. However, such legislation is yet to appear from the Government. Patients and medical staff have been forced to endure repeated harassment and intimidation when seeking or providing healthcare.

I fundamentally believe in the right to protest. However, a right to privacy is an implicit right in the Constitution, in particular in cases such as the ones we are discussing here. Anti-abortion activities are happening outside hospitals, clinics and GP surgeries across the country on almost a daily basis. These protests include chanting, name-calling and the use of seriously distressing images, as well as props such as small coffins and white crosses. These protests, if we can even call them that, show an utter disregard for the welfare of women and pregnant people, who are at some of the most vulnerable moments of their lives. They deserve our protection to ensure their privacy.

In its submission to the Universal Periodic Review, the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, noted that ongoing anti-abortion protests outside healthcare providers aim to deter individuals from accessing healthcare and doctors from providing it. This can cause distress and exacerbate existing social stigmas and cause a serious risk to a range of rights. It is also totally unacceptable that healthcare providers would be subjected to harassment or intimidation in the course of their duties.

We know that access to abortion in Ireland is unequal across the country. I am concerned in particular about GPs in rural areas, as in many cases their family home is attached to their practice and if they face protests it provides a chilling effect on them providing services. Let us be clear; as long as abortion remains inaccessible in Ireland, we have failed to deliver on the mandate given by the public in 2018. This legislation is a concrete step towards realising the democratic mandate for free, safe, legal and local abortion.I strongly urge the Government to support it.

At the outset of the Twenty-sixth Seanad, colleagues spoke of how this Seanad needed to be a space where ideas were listened to and implemented regardless of whether they came from the Government or Opposition. Women and pregnant people have waited long enough for an assurance that they can safely access reproductive healthcare. Simply saying that legislation is on the way is not good enough. We have before us legislation that is timely, that addresses this vital issue and that will ensure that women and pregnant people can safely access reproductive healthcare without intimidation or harassment. It is an emergency for people experiencing crisis pregnancies and for healthcare providers and we need to act now. I urge the Government to engage with the sponsors of this legislation so that it may be enacted urgently. We cannot have further delays in the realisation of rights for women and pregnant people. They have waited long enough.

I commend the Bill to the House.