Abortions are available at St Vincent’s hospital in Dublin, the Minister for Health has said. It is no longer run as a Catholic hospital. It is claimed by some, without direct evidence, that the new National Maternity Hospital will not perform abortions because it will be built on the same site as formerly Catholic hospitals founded by the Religious Sisters of Charity.

Stephen Donnelly said all procedures were permitted at St Vincent’s at present. He told the Oireachtas committee on health today that abortion could be carried out at St Vincent’s if a woman was severely ill but that in the normal course of events such procedures would be carried out at a maternity hospital.

He was responding to questions from TDs as to whether the new National Maternity Hospital would provide abortions if it were built on land owned by St Vincent’s.

Social Democrats co-leader Roisin Shortall said: “there is no example anywhere in the world, that I’m aware of, where there is a hospital operation under the auspices of a Catholic organisation, and which performs the full range of women’s healthcare services.”

Mr Donnelly replied that the Government “categorically” was not setting up the National Maternity Hospital under the auspices of a Catholic organisation.

“I double-checked, the charters of the hospital don’t contain any reference to religious ethos“, he said.