Lynn Boylan (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire. As the Minister did, I will start by commenting on the national maternity hospital because I would like to put on the record how disappointed we are at the deal that went through the Cabinet a couple of week ago. Nobody was denying the need for a maternity hospital. Concerns were raised by a wide group of people who were legitimate in raising those concerns and diligent in their attention to the details involved. Those concerns were not addressed. They related to the difference between a leasehold and a freehold, but particularly applied to the retention of the "clinically appropriate" language. We heard there were people who had no objection to the removal of those words, yet they remained. It is deeply disappointing that while the decision was delayed for two weeks, it seemed to be a box-ticking exercise in the hope that the furore would die down and we would move on two weeks later as intended. I express my disappointment in the regard. The situation is disappointing to those of us who raised concerns and feel those concerns were not addressed.

I would also like to raise a couple of other issues. We know that woman have had to go to the courts for years to access healthcare. Even though we have repealed the eighth amendment, there remains an issue around the accessibility of abortion services in this country. One in ten GPs still does not offer abortion services and only nine out of the ten existing maternity hospitals offer those services. The Minister has been in this House numerous times promising to deal with the issue of safe access zones and we are still to see progress in that regard. The Bill to legislate for that has passed all Stages in the Seanad. We need those safe access zones and that legislation passed so women are not having to run the gauntlet to access healthcare in this country.

There were awful images on social media during the week of protests outside a clinic in Stepaside. We also heard of one incident where a GP service has had to shut down its entire clinic on Saturdays because protesters were attending every Saturday. That means that not only woman who want to access abortion services are being denied access on a Saturday but all patients of that GP clinic are being denied access. We need progress on that issue. There must be no more delays in that regard.

I will also raise an issue in respect of assisted human reproduction. My Sinn Féin colleagues recently met parents who have had children through international surrogacy and have clearly outlined the unacceptable issues and challenges they have faced every day due to the lack of regulation. While the assisted human reproduction legislation is very welcome, albeit long overdue, we cannot just omit certain issues that are deemed to be too difficult and decide to tackle them at another time or allow another Minister to address them. We have seen that approach to the Children and Families Relationships Act. Certain issues and certain members of society have been left in situations that are either unregulated or without the necessary legal protection. I was concerned to hear from representatives of the Assisted Human Reproduction Coalition that the Minister has not engaged with them. There has been a lack of engagement and reassurance that this issue is going to be addressed. I would like the Minister to respond as to why he is not engaging with the group.

My party wants strong legislation that is fit for modern Ireland and that serves the interests of the thousands of people who find themselves grappling to deal with infertility issues each year. The assisted human reproduction legislation has been in the works since 2005 and as in the case of the national maternity hospital, no one is looking to delay it. However, we must make sure we get it right. We need the legislation to deliver for those families.

I remind the Minister of the commitment in the programme for Government on the provision of free period products. I believe a pilot scheme is being launched. We are more than two years into the term of this Government. The provision of the products they need every month in all public buildings is low-hanging fruit when it comes to women's healthcare.From the experience of the organisations that are filling that gap and delivering those products, I know the need is greater than ever. We now have Ukrainian refugees and the organisations have stepped up to provide those women with these products. We were told those in direct provision centres would be able to access the products yet all of the time these organisations are being contacted by women in direct provision who are saying the products are not being provided by the managers of those centres. The need for food banks has also increased. There is a great need out there for the provision of period products. I urge the Minister to progress that. We do not need a pilot. We just need to put the products in the bathrooms of all public buildings.