Director of the National Women's Council of Ireland Orla O’Connor and Pro-Life Campaign Manager Eilís Mulroy discuss the proposed changes to current abortion legislation.
A review of abortion legislation set to be published on Tuesday recommends 10 law changes and 60 operational changes.
Among the proposed legal changes, is a call for the current three-day waiting period for anyone seeking an abortion to be made optional.
Pro-Life Campaign Manager Eilís Mulroy told On the Record these changes are not what people voted for.
“It was part of the promises that were made to the public,” she said. “People like senior ministers, like Simon Coveney himself, came out and said that was one of the reasons why he was comfortable voting yes.”
“How many people have voted yes based on those comments?”
Ms Mulroy said “thousands” of women have changed their mind on abortion following the three-day waiting period.
“I know of some of those women myself who are holding babies of six months, 12 months, 18 months,” she said. “It's very important when you're taking a decision such an irreversible decision in so many areas of life, we encourage people to take time.”
“Evidence-led review”
Chair of the National Women’s Council Orla O’Connor said the upcoming report is “evidence-led” and should be taken seriously.
“There is no clinical evidence for the purpose of [the wait],” she said. “In fact, people see them as quite patronising.”
Ms O’Connor said the majority of women go through with the procedure.
“A key provider of abortion care, the Irish Family Planning Association, have said 97% of the women from the first appointment proceeded through the procedure,” she said.
Ms Mulroy argued that most abortions happen through GPs rather than IFPA and these findings are skewed.
Leaving Ireland
Ms O’Connor said the three-day waiting period is still resulting in people leaving the country to get an abortion.
“Over 775 women accessed abortion care in Lincolnshire, Wales between 2019 and 2021,” she said. “What we want to see is a situation where everyone who needs abortion care can access it at home.”
Ms Mulroy said the waiting-period has not made abortions inaccessible.
24/5/20128. Abortion Referendum posters from the Yes and No sides on lamp posts outside Government Building in Dublin Ireland. The poll takes place tomorrow on the goverments proposal to repeal the eight Amendment of the Constitution, which limits womes access to abortion facilities in Ireland. Photo: Eamonn Farrell/RollingNews.ie“The abortion numbers are so huge that they don't suggest that there was a problem with access,” she said. “The Minister for Health told us in 2022, there was 8,500 abortions. That's one baby aborted for every seven being born - that's empty preschool children missing from classrooms all over the country.”
Ms O’Connor emphasised an evidence-led approach to legislative reform and said “the new World Health Organization guidelines informed the review”.
She said it has always been part of the Government’s promise to review legislation and makes changes where necessary.
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