Tánaiste Simon Harris has said a “strong case” now exists for more TDs to be allowed to vote outside of the party whip system on issues of conscience. It follows a vote to end the mandatory three-day wait period for abortion.
The Sinn Féin Bill, to end the mandatory three-day wait before accessing an abortion in early pregnancy, passed the second stage in the Dáil on Wednesday. It did so by 86 votes to 70.
Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael TDs were given a free vote on whether to allow the Bill proceed to second stage on Wednesday evening.
However, both Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Tánaiste Simon Harris had indicated they would back the Bill.
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Speaking to reporters on Thursday morning, Harris said he had “sat in many parliamentary rooms where conversations have been divisive and difficult and where people lost party whip in relation to this issue”. He was referring, in part, to the lead-in to the referendum on the Eighth Amendment in 2018.
Harris added: “I’ve been very clear since I became leader of Fine Gael that in issues of conscience, people should vote in accordance with their conscience. These are difficult, sensitive issues . . . It was my expressed wish that members of my party would vote in the way they wished on this issue.
“I think no more or no less of somebody depending on whether they voted tá or níl."
He confirmed the decision for the Bill to pass was taken “by a coalition of TDs in government and opposition, and I actually think that’s quite healthy”. Harris said he felt there was “a strong case for more TDs to be allowed outside of the whip system to give their views on sensitive issues”.
Cabinet Ministers who opposed the change to the legislation included Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan, Minister for Housing James Browne, Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon, Minister for Children Norma Foley, Minister for Social Protection Dara Calleary and Minister for Enterprise Peter Burke.
Asked about his decision to vote against the Bill, despite the Taoiseach’s support for it, O’Callaghan told reporters he respected the position of his fellow Fianna Fáil TDs and others. He said his decision to vote against it was a “difficult” one.
“I campaigned for Repeal back in 2018. The reason I decided to vote against it, and it was a difficult choice, I had to consider it carefully . . . I just recognised there was a very good, collaborative response to the issue back in 2018,” he said.
“We brought middle-ground Ireland with us. People were advised in advance what would be the statutory regime that would operate as well. My view is in the context of that statutory regime set out . . . was that I didn’t want to start unpicking that now, so that’s the reason why I voted no."
O’Callaghan was not worried about any backlash from others in Fianna Fáil and said he welcomed the fact that his party leader “permitted members of Fianna Fáil to have a free vote on this issue”.
“There was a broad range of views reflected in Dáil Éireann last night . . . I respect their position,” he said.
It was a “healthy sign” that people in the party were happy to vote in accordance with their conscience and didn’t feel pressure to “go the way the leadership is going” as it was a “complex issue”, he said.
O’Callaghan echoed Harris’s views on having more opportunities for free votes, saying: “I do think it’s something other parties should look to Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael as an example of. I think there’s a lot of Sinn Féin TDs who’d have preferred to have a free vote last night and they weren’t given that opportunity."
Despite voting against the Bill, O’Callaghan said it would not be an issue he would continue campaigning on.
“My own view was that we should not start unpicking it, but I won’t be campaigning one way or another,” he said.
