A cabinet minister says the government is "reflecting" on whether abortion should be permitted in cases of rape.
Children's minister James Reilly says last year's abortion laws are being monitored - and could be amended if it's deemed necessary.
He was speaking ahead of a cabinet discussion on the case of Ms Y, an asylum seeker who was denied an abortion after being raped.
Minister Reilly - who was responsible for introducing the laws last year - says the government is mindful of women who fall pregnant after being raped.
"Rape is a dreadful and heinous crime, and the consequences of women who become pregnant as a result of that is [sic] an extremely serious situation," he said.
"The government are reflecting on that at the moment, and are continuing to do so."
The minister added, however, that it "would not be right for me to pre-empt what [the Cabinet's] views might be before we get an update" from his successor as Health minister, Leo Varadkar.
