Government must act on mandate

■ The Irish people gave the Government a clear mandate to legislate for abortion provision and care in their own country.

It is important that this provision is legislated in a way that does not prevent Irish women from accessing abortion.

In Italy, conscientious objection means that 90pc of gynaecologists in some southern regions do not provide abortion care, making abortion in these areas near impossible to access.

While conscientious objection is of course a right, the Government here

should beware of unintended consequences.

For example, a register of conscientious objectors, while seeming a good idea at the outset, can severely limit provision.

The ethos of Catholic-run hospitals may bring pressure on doctors to place themselves on the register, effectively excluding whole institutions (and consultants associated with them) from providing abortion services. Similarly, direct or indirect pressure may be brought within practices or small peer groups in specific geographical areas.

Far better to respect the individual right of conscientious objection, coupled with a legal duty of prompt referral, which also protects the rights of the patient.

Prompt referral is key to any conscientious objection provision in the legislation, and is already part of the Irish medical council guidelines.

Similarly, a register of practitioners providing abortion care can make these practitioners a target of anti-abortion organisations. Even with exclusion zones, which are likely to be part of legislation, attracting trouble is never good for women seeking care in a crisis, or for the doctors providing that care.

There is already a rising chorus of voices that seeks to water down provision on spurious cost or resource grounds.

It is important that the Government stands firm and uses the mandate given to it by two-thirds of the voters in Ireland to provide accessible, affordable abortion and reproductive care to all women who need it.

Chryssa Dislis Co Cork