Mary Seery Kearney (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome and support the Bill. How could I not do so?

We last debated this issue in October and it is now February. What progress has been made? I hope the Government is not minded to leave this matter inextricably linked with the review of the operation of the primary legislation for termination services because too much harm is being done daily in the meantime. I am concerned that too few people are prepared to offer services for fear of their own safety. I thank the Together for Safety group for all its work and welcome its members to the Gallery.

The timing of protests to coincide with clear red-circled appointments is a sinister development on a number of fronts. It suggests there is activism somewhere within the hospital. That being the case, while this is a matter for the individuals involved, from a GDPR perspective it is horrific that such personal and sensitive information is being released. There is no reason action cannot be taken within the hospital. Such action should be of a very radical nature because if this happened in any other service or with respect to access to any other medical treatment, it would be viewed very badly. The particular nature of this case suggests there is political activism taking place, and that is unreasonable. It is not our place to hold a review but I am anxious to know - perhaps Senator Gavan knows - whether the Data Protection Commission is involved. Is there an active investigation. If not, there should be one? Has the commission been properly notified? It should investigate this matter. From my experience of data investigations and breaches, I know they can be incisive investigations. That is what is needed here. The obligations on a data controller to preserve and safeguard information are onerous. Both sides of that are engaged.

In June, this Government will have been in power for nearly two years. There is no excuse for not having legislation on this matter.Either we completely support this all the way through, or, if there is some other plan, we need to know about it. We need to know the timeline as to when it will be operated. I refer to safeguarding the providers of termination services and those who need to access them.