Abortion Services
Dail Éireann — 2026-01-22
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Ruth Coppinger (PBP), Dublin West

That is no problem; I am just clarifying it. It was very undemocratic of TDs who had not debated that Bill - I had not debated it because I was not in the previous Dáil - just to block it. It should have been allowed to go forward for debate. My understanding is that all the provisions in the Bill were measures the citizens' assembly had proposed but that the politicians on the relevant committee, of which I was a member, were not willing to put forward. They were perfectly normal measures that the broad population agreed with but politicians were not willing to implement.
The three-day wait requirement was put in the legislation to appease Simon Coveney and people like him. That is the reality. I was here and I remember it. It was not indicated at the committee or anywhere else. The key point is that we now have very right-wing TDs in the Government who are anti-choice. The Minister should not be appeasing that bloc. The priority should be the health needs of women and pregnant people in this country.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-01-22/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:32+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-01-22