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The Last Word With Matt Cooper

Politicians Debate The Eighth Amendment

In the last of our debates on the upcoming referendum, politicians from both sides debated the Eight...
TodayFM
TodayFM

6:20 PM - 23 May 2018



The Last Word With Matt Cooper

Politicians Debate The Eighth Amendment

TodayFM
TodayFM

6:20 PM - 23 May 2018

Listen to this episode



In the last of our debates on the upcoming referendum, politicians from both sides debated the Eighth Amendment and the potential impact of repealing it.

Mary Butler, Fianna Fáil TD for Waterford, feels that if the Eighth Amendment is removed "any unborn child in this country, planned or unplanned, will not have the right to be born."

"I would like to see proposals put forward specifically to deal with rape, incest and fatal foetal abnormalities."

Catherine Noone, Fine Gael Senator and chair of the Oireachtas Committee on Repeal of the Eighth Amendment, says we have had 35 years to address the issues involved: "It's clear from all our deliberations that there is no alternative, and we've proposed the best possible scenario for women in crisis situations."

Peadar Toibin, Sinn Féin TD for Meath West says: "We're talking about humanity, and here we are having a conversation that allows for the legal taking of human lives."

He thinks it's important to try and reduce the number of women going to Britain for abortions by putting support services in place. "I believe that if we have a chance to save lives, that's what we should do."

Clare Daly, Independent for Change TD for Dublin North, says the 'hard cases' can't be dealt with unless the Eighth Amendment is repealed.

"The idea that a fully grown woman is equal to a foetus is reprehensible. That's not to say the foetus has no value, but the greater the age of the foetus, the better protection our law will give to it."

To catch the full chat press the play button on the image on the top of the screen


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