A Labour TD has admitted that abortion is not a treatment for suicidal ideation or suicidal intent.

Speaking on Tuesday during the Health Committee’s hearings on the Bill, Ciara Conway, the Deputy Chair of the committee said that everyone was agreed that abortion was not a treatment for suicide.

Ms Conway, who is in favour of liberal abortion legislation, said: “We all agree that abortion is not a treatment for suicide. It is the woman’s right to choose.”

Ms Conway, in remarks thanking witnesses for their presentation, said: “I put it to the witnesses that we all advocate that abortion is not a treatment for suicide, but it is the choice of the woman and it is the doctors who certify the woman to be suicidal.  

“These are trained medical psychiatrists who, day in, day out and week in, week out deal with risk and put people on suicide watch. Are we now to believe that they are incapable of ascertaining whether a woman is suicidal?”

She quoted Dr. Anthony McCarthy, a perinatal psychiatrist who works in that field extensively, as stating that abortion “is not a treatment for suicide”.

“[B]ut he added that counselling and anti-antidepressants are not treatments either and that there is no treatment for suicide. He argued that we have to try to prevent suicide by looking at the reasons for suicide,” she said.

She added: ““We all agree that abortion is not a treatment for suicide. It is the woman’s right to choose.”