Rebecca Moynihan (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 3:

In page 16, between lines 7 and 8, to insert the following: “(fa) who, being ordinarily resident in the State, is returning to the State having travelled to another state for—

(i) an unavoidable, imperative and time-sensitive medical reason,

or

(ii) a termination of pregnancy,

and the reason is certified by a person who is a registered medical practitioner or a person holding an equivalent qualification outside the State,”.

In the debate on the Safe Access to Termination of Pregnancy Services Bill 2021, I asked the Minister to clarify regulations made under the current legislation, under which a person is an exempted traveller if ordinarily resident in the State and returning to the State having travelled to another state for an unavoidable, imperative and time-sensitive medical reason. Over the course of the pandemic, it has been questioned whether this applies to terminations of pregnancy and women who have to travel for an abortion after 12 weeks. I will read reports of a number of such situations that have appeared in The Irish Times.This first report was published in May.

'Bernadette' (not her real name) travelled to London last month. Her unplanned pregnancy came shortly after giving birth to a baby who had spent “a long time” in neo-natal intensive care.

“In advance of booking flights, I consulted with ASN and my doctor to confirm I should be exempt from Covid testing... Both were confident my return should not be an issue based on the exemptions,” she said.

“However, on arriving at the check-in desk at Heathrow, I was told I was not exempt despite producing detailed documentation to confirm the procedure and my discharge. I asked to speak to a supervisor who informed me of the same thing after calling immigration to check the possibility of travel due to my circumstances. All of these discussions were conducted in front of other passengers at a busy check-in desk – a stressful and degrading experience.

“I was told that without a PCR test it was not possible to fly and I would have to go into mandatory quarantine on arrival home.”

Bernadette said she was provided with a number for the Irish Embassy and directed to the test centre in Heathrow Airport.

“Being very distressed at this stage, I was then told that the results of any test would not be back for up to 72 hours, meaning extending my stay, spending more money and not being able to return to my two children at home in the care of my partner, who was trying to work full time.”

Bernadette eventually found a rapid test centre near Heathrow and paid an exorbitant amount to get a three-hour turnaround for her results. Also reported in The Irish Times were the experiences of Terminations for Medical Reasons, TFMR, which has "come across at least 30 people who have been forced to travel during the pandemic". Its representative is quoted as follows:

They have to show that letter to strangers, who scrutinise it, asking if their reason for travelling is really essential. There have been women turned away who have had to reschedule and turn back. The fear and the shame and the stigma and the grief and the loss is just magnified 10 times over by going through those kinds of horrible circumstances, on their way to lose their baby.

The Minister did not clarify this matter when I asked him about it last month, nor has he clarified it in his answers to questions from abortion providers. They have received the stock response that the exemption applies to anybody travelling for unavoidable, imperative and time-sensitive medical reasons. I have been told that the people interpreting that do not consider abortion to be a time-sensitive medical reason because an appointment must be booked. There is great stress and anxiety on the ground, not to mention the additional expense of going through testing. A test in Dublin Airport before travelling now costs approximately €70 but, during the summer, it was €200 or more. The Minister of State can imagine what it must be like leaving a clinic after undergoing a surgical abortion only to have to run around trying to find a testing centre to get a test within that period. People are just not sure whether they will be able to get on the plane. In addition, the person checking passengers in at the desk may decide to turn the woman away or the woman may fail that test and be forced to spend an additional ten days in the UK. That happened to a client of the Abortion Support Network recently.

We tabled an amendment with that in mind and asked for clarification. We wanted termination of pregnancy to be specifically mentioned. The amendment was voted down by the Government last night. We were told it was not needed and that the matter would be dealt with in regulations. We are now 18 months into a pandemic and it has not been dealt with in regulations. It also was not clarified by the Minister when I gave him the opportunity to do so in this House a month ago, before we knew about this variant and the introduction of this mandatory hotel quarantine Bill. Senator Gavan asked the Minister about it and offered to cede time to allow him to confirm. The Minister said he had to go away and check. He would not confirm it. The Minister himself did not know whether this ground was included in the exemption. That is why we proposed this amendment to the Bill.

It is absolutely shameful that there are women travelling today who have had to go through the additional expense of testing. If they are vaccinated, they need antigen testing. This must be paid for privately. There is no State procedure. It is not easy to get the test and that adds a great additional burden. There are women travelling today who were told they had to do that. There will be women travelling next week but, after 18 months and at least 375 women travelling a year during that period, the Government has refused to confirm whether the exemption applies.

We are proposing this amendment to clarify matters. I will push it to a vote. I am greatly disappointed that the Minister would not confirm whether the exemption applied when in this House a month ago. I am also disappointed that the Bill was not amended last night when the Government had the opportunity to clarify the matter. Guidance should be given to the airlines that people with discharge letters from abortion providers in the UK, the Netherlands or elsewhere can travel freely. If, as a Member of the Oireachtas, I travel tomorrow, I will be exempt from the testing requirements and mandatory hotel quarantine. If I am travelling because I have had to get an abortion, it is not clear whether I am exempt. It is certainly not clear to people on the ground. That is why I will be pushing this to a vote.