Bríd Smith Demands Immediate Review of Termination of Pregnancy Act

Bríd Smith spoke on 9 Nov 2021 about the pending three-year review of the Termination of Pregnancy Act, arguing the process is unacceptably delayed and must address embedded human rights violations. She warned that with the statutory review due on 1 January 2022 there are only about seven weeks remaining and that the review leader had not yet been appointed.

Deadline and timeline

The review of the Termination of Pregnancy Act is required within three years, expiring on 1 January 2022. She noted roughly seven weeks remained and highlighted that one of those weeks is Christmas week, questioning how the review could be completed in time.

Unappointed review leader

In a parliamentary question (PQ) response she said the leader of the review had not yet been appointed. She challenged how the review's work could be delivered without an appointed leader given the statutory deadline.

Scope of the review

She outlined that the review must focus on three sections - service users, service providers and a public consultation - and raised concern about meeting those requirements in the available timeframe.

Human rights concerns

She argued the review was necessary because there are violations of human rights embedded in the legislation, emphasising the seriousness of the issues to be examined during the statutory review.

Ministerial response

A ministerial reply noted that the Minister for Health had announced a review and that engagement and follow-through would occur. The speaker said she did not accept that this response was good enough and pressed for concrete action on the outstanding points raised.