The Minister for Health, Simon Harris, used social media to hit back at pro-life writers who had argued over the weekend that the Government’s proposed abortion bill is too radical and needs to be amended.
Writing on Twitter, Mr Harris said a “few opinion pieces in Sunday papers today attempting to re-run or re-fight referendum on the 8th. We had the Referendum. The people spoke. They had lot of information in advance of making their decision – including a detailed draft law. Time to get on with it and pass the law.”
During the campaign, the head of the Referendum Commission, Judge Isobel Kennedy, stressed the people were voting solely on whether or not to repeal the 8th amendment, and not on the proposed legislation.
Breda O’Brien begun the critique of the Government’s plans in a piece in the Irish Times on Saturday noting that pro-choice campaigners already want to abolish even the meagre restrictions the bill would impose. David Quinn wrote in the Sunday Times that there is far less support for the Govt’s radical legislation than for repealing the Eighth Amendment according to RTE’s extensive exit poll done on the day of the referendum itself. Finally, Wendy Melady wrote in the Sunday Independent that the Government want to supply abortion free of charge but not genuine medical treatments.
As if to prove her point, the Times Ireland on Monday confirmed that this year’s budget will include new expenditure to pay for abortion. The paper also reported that Mr Harris on Saturday will join a March for Choice which is dedicated to calling for ‘free, safe and legal’ abortion provision.
