PD briefing: Minister for Health Mary Harney and a party colleague, PD deputy Fiona O'Malley, have publicly differed on whether a future government should consider legislating for the X case. Miriam Donohoe, Political Staff, reports.
While Ms Harney said that she was not in favour of such a move in the light of the Miss D case, Ms O'Malley said that the issue should be explored in the next Dáil.
Speaking at a PD election briefing yesterday, the Minister said that the abortion debate has been dominated by extremes on both sides. She did not know how any government could seek to legislate for when somebody might or might not be suicidal.
"I am not aware of any parties in this election saying they will do this in the life of the next government."
She pointed out that we had had a referendum a few years ago which was "fair and balanced".
"I think it would be impossible, quite honestly. I think this debate is dominated by extremes on both sides, and we are quite a bit away from having legislation in this area in Ireland."
However, Ms O'Malley said at the same briefing that she would "welcome the opportunity to look at the issue in the next Dáil", adding that we did not need to have "case after case" before the courts.
The situation of the young girl (Miss D), with multiple legal teams arguing over the tragedy, was "an unfortunate situation", she said. "The issue here in this case was the right to travel, which we all thought had been firmly established. I think it's an area that needs a little consideration, certainly."
Meanwhile, Ms Harney yesterday claimed that the Fine Gael "contract" to provide 2,300 new hospital beds was "bogus" and would be broken in the first year. She said that the Fine Gael and Labour figures suggested that 560 new hospital beds would be in place by the end of 2008, but this would be impossible to provide in that time, either by the public or the private sector.
An ESRI study last October, which formed one basis for this promise, had set out a variety of scenarios for hospital-bed expansion, and not just one. It had also stated that a more detailed analysis was required.
"560 beds is the size of many regional hospitals, for example Beaumont, Cork University Hospital, University College Hospital, Galway.
"No one can build a new hospital in one year. No one can build extensions to existing hospitals for 560 beds in just one year. In effect, this means that a Fine Gael or Labour minister is doomed to fail within one year of taking office."