Rónán Mullen (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Go raibh míle maith agat, a Chathaoirligh. Tiocfaidh mé ar ais tar éis an sos, ach I would like to get a debate with the Minister for Education on the proposed reduction in the draft new curriculum for primary schools in the allocation of time to the teaching of Irish. There is great concern about that. There is more which needs to be said about it, but I wanted to get my ask in ahead of our break in order that the Acting Leader might get an ask in that we might return to that issue very soon.

I want to draw attention to and ask for a debate about the working of our abortion laws in Ireland in the light of two tragic developments. We heard in the report at the Joint Committee on Health yesterday a very biased presentation from the supposedly independent chairperson, who was calling for a change in the laws and the removal of the three-day waiting period without, as it emerged under questioning, ever having engaged with a single woman out of the potentially 4,000 who did not go for the second appointment and who may have changed their minds. The fact there was no interest in exploring why they changed their minds and how that might reflect on the need for that three-day waiting period shows a terrible attitude, as well as that they did not even have any regard to the HSE figures which showed that so many people did not go for the second appointment.

Also last night, Deputy Bríd Smith's legislation passed Second Stage in the Dáil, which would introduce abortion on demand up to viability, abortion up to birth in the case of disability, with no talk of precautionary pain relief for late-term abortions, and complete decriminalisation, so that anything would go without any legal sanction.This passed Second Stage by 67 votes to 64 votes. What does that say about our legislators? That is the second time flawed legislation has passed Second Stage. We saw that with Deputy Gino Kenny's legislation on euthanasia, which everybody saw was dangerous, and yet it still passed on Second Stage. It is really important that concerned citizens contact their Deputies and Senators, in particular the Government ones, and ask about what is going on. There is a lack of humanity in our Legislature when people will not even talk about precautionary pain relief in late-term abortions. Where is the humanity? Where is the decency? It is really important that citizens start politely plaguing their politicians, because there is something bad at work in these Houses when votes like that can pass.