Pro-life TDs fear abortion ‘gerrymander’
is growing within the pro-life wings of Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil that the committee on the Eighth Amendment is being used to fast-track a far more liberal abortion regime than voters actually want.
The committee is expected to, like its Irish Water predecessor, provide the Dáil with a report into the future of our abortion laws. In the wake of the surprisingly radical conclusions of the Irish Citizens’ Assembly, concern is growing among the two parties’ pro-life wings about the possibility of a ‘committee-led pro-choice gerrymander’. Sources within Fine Gael told the Irish Mail on Sunday: ‘We are watching the progress of this committee and the entire process with great suspicion, after the [Citizen’s] Assembly and now this, we believe some sort of fix is in.’ Another Fine Gael TD warned that ‘we haven’t gone away you know and our votes are far more important in a minority government situation’. One source noted: ‘This committee is being set up to secure a prochoice result; Sinn Féin, Labour, Independents-4-Change, the Social Democrats and the Greens are all pro-choice.’ Though Fine Gael (with five committee members) and Fianna Fáil (with four) retain nine of the 20 seats, two of the Fianna Fáil nominees, Billy Kelleher and Lisa Chambers, are seen to be supportive of the repeal the Eighth Amendment position.
Fine Gael has not yet chosen its nominees but the expected members – Kate O’Connell, Bernard Durkan, Jerry Buttimer and Senator Catherine Noone – are not seen as being close to the party’s still substantial pro-life wing.
One Fine Gael source said: ‘The way this is being set up may actually suit us, this committee could yet come up with something so left of centre it will be thrown out once it emerges.’
Concern is also growing within Fianna Fáil about the committee’s positioning on the issue.
Cork TD Margaret Murphy O’Mahony said: ‘It is very important the new committee is representative of all sides. I and others would be hoping all views, particularly on the ground in our party, will be taken on board.’
She added: ‘I am pro-life and there is a substantive body with similar views in the party.’