Wallace’s abortion Bill ‘raising false expectations’, says Coveney

The private members’ bill proposing to grant access to abortion in the case of fatal foetal abnormalities is “raising false expectations for people”, Minister for Housing Simon Coveney has said.

Speaking in Galway Friday, he said the Government was “committed to a process that can bring about change”.

However, the Bill before the Dáil could not do that as it was unconstitutional, and “therefore even if it’s passed will not change anything for anybody”.

He was speaking after Minister of State John Halligan reiterated he would not be voting against Mick Wallace's Bill.

Mr Halligan said he believed there should be a free vote on the issue and that the whip should not apply.

The Government has so far failed to reach agreement on the Bill which allows for abortions in the cases of fatal foetal abnormalities.

Fine Gael and the Independent Alliance are still at odds over how to vote on the proposed legislation, which was debated in the Dáil yesterday.

"It is an issue of conscience. There is a need to show some compassion and freedom of speech," Mr Halligan told RTÉ's Morning Ireland.

“I have met many traumatised people through my work over the years, but the people who have affected me most, sometimes moving me to tears, are women who have had to go abroad for abortions because of cases of fatal foetal abnormality or rape.

“Sometimes you have to do what you think is right. If you can’t follow your conscience then you’re not up to much.”

However, Mr Coveney said " the actual piece of legislation that is being proposed by Mick Wallace has previously been shown to be unconstitutional and the Attorney General has confirmed that again this time".

Mr Coveney said: “We want to set up a citizen’s assembly to tease through all of the complexity of this issue and other linked issues.

“We want recommendations quite quickly coming from that citizen’s assembly and then we want the Dáil to actually vote on that in terms of what we need to do to address those issues and that’s probably going to result in a referendum but we don’t know yet. Let’s wait and see what the recommendations are.”

He added: “It’s not going to break up the Government... Certainly within Fine Gael there isn’t going to be a free vote on this issue because if you vote for it you’re voting for something that’s not going to do anything for anybody.

“John Halligan will make his own decisions on this but I think there is understanding in Government as to the strength of feeling that some individuals have but we need as a Government to look at the advice that we get from the Attorney General and we need to make responsible decisions on the back of that.”

Mr Halligan said the Programme for Government did not include the issue of fatal foetal abnormality – “this is an issue of conscience.”

He added that he would be speaking with colleagues in the Independent Alliance, but was adamant that he would not vote against the Bill. He would not comment when asked if he would abstain from the vote.

“We are still hopeful there will be a free vote.”

A collective Cabinet position could not be presented to the House by Minister for Health Simon Harris, who instead had to reflect his own personal view.

Mr Harris said he would not be accepting the proposed legislation because it was constitutionally flawed and urged other deputies to do the same.

Fine Gael TD Kate O’Connell has now called a meeting of all Fine Gael TDs and Senators in favour of repealing the eighth amendment.

In the Dáil, she gave an emotional account of her experience with a traumatic pregnancy diagnosis.

“Today as we sit here people are receiving a diagnosis to tell them to prepare for a death not a birth and that their misery cannot be relieved in our own country,” Ms O’Connell said.