Groups criticise plans for abortion ballot

Both anti-abortion and pro-choice groups have criticised the Government's plans to press ahead with a referendum on abortion based on the wording in the current Bill.

The anti-abortion group, the Mother and Child Campaign (MCC), said yesterday there was a "great possibility there won't be a referendum on abortion", while the pro-choice group, Alliance For a No Vote, (ANV) said it was "quite clear" a referendum based on the Government's planned wording would be rejected by the electorate.

Mr Justin Barrett, spokesman for the MCC, said yesterday: "We still think it's a real possibility there'll be no referendum. We don't see how the Government can pass it. What it said when it was introducing this Protection of Human Life in Pregnancy Bill was that it was aiming to set it up on the middle ground. It said it was going to try and attract a majority on the middle ground. On this issue there is no middle ground and so the Government has managed to alienate both sides."

The anti-abortion lobby's chief objection to the Bill is that it defines human life as beginning after implantation in the womb. The pro-choice group is opposed mainly because the Bill says the threat of suicide is not a genuine threat to a woman's life and therefore inadequate as a reason for terminating a pregnancy.

Mr Barrett said that if the Government held a referendum, with wording based on the Bill, there would be a "low turn-out of middle ground voters".

"And both the pro-abortion and the pro-life groups will turn out in large numbers to defeat it."

He said the only practical solution open to the Government was to "withdraw the Bill". The Government should "sit down and clearly establish its philosophical approach to this issue".

"Are they pro-life or pro-abortion? They should consult with pro-life groups and find a wording that is clearly pro-life."

Ms Sinead N∅ Chulachain, spokeswoman for ANV, said the Government had "all along tried to present this as a consensus issue" and had planned to "attract the middle ground". "But there is no consensus and if it pressed ahead with this wording the Government would be quite likely to lose.

"I can't imagine that would be an attractive prospect for Fianna Fβil, going into an election, particularly after losing the Nice Treaty. It would certainly be foolish to go ahead." She said "cracks are emerging" in the FF/PD coalition on the question of holding a referendum.