Scottish Catholic Observer

Pat Buckley (above), who represents SPUC in Ireland, told the SCO from Dublin: “Far from being restrictive as the government claims, the bill has the potential to lead to widespread availability of abortion.”

The Irish Cabinet has agreed the terms of a controversial new abortion bill that will include the risk of suicide as grounds for a termination.

After some six hours of intensive negotiations on Tuesday, ministers agreed to publish the heads of the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill. The name of the legislation has been changed from the previous title, Protection of Maternal Life Bill but Irish Taoiseach Enda Kenny claimed that the changes did not mean Irish law on abortion was being altered.

However, the compromise bill will allow a pregnant women who says she is a suicide risk to have an abortion if that is also the assessment of a panel of three doctors, two psychiatrists and one obstetrician, who must agree unanimously.

“The law on abortion in Ireland is not being changed,” Mr Kenny stated, adding that the new bill ‘would continue within the law to assert the restrictions on abortion that have applied in Ireland and which will apply in future.’

The Irish Government had already decided to repeal legislation making abortion a criminal act, and to introduce regulations on when doctors can perform a termination when a woman’s life is regarded as being at risk, including by suicide.

The Irish Catholic Church has strongly condemned proposed legislation to liberalise abortion as a move to ‘licence the direct and intentional killing of the  innocent baby.’

Abortion law in Ireland has recently been in the headlines following the death of an Indian dentist in Galway last year after she had a miscarriage. The jury in the inquest into the death of Savita Halappanavar this month gave a verdict of medical misadventure. A group of 11 prominent consultants, who are specialists in a range of areas of medicine, this week said Irish law did not prevent the ‘necessary treatment’ of Mrs Halappanavar.

A national Vigil of Prayer for mothers and their unborn babies will take place at Our Lady’s Shrine in Knock, County Mayo, tomorrow (Saturday) led by Cardinal Seán Brady.

—This story ran in full in the May 3 print edition of the SCO