Liz O'Donnell
Ceist:7 Ms O'Donnell asked the Minister for Health if he has entered into discussions with the medical council in relation to their guidelines regarding abortion in view of their recent statement on the matter.
Ceisteanna — Questions Oral Answers. - Abortion Guidelines.
I will be meeting the medical council to discuss a range of issues of interest to the council and myself. As regard's the council's recent statement on ethical guidelines, it is a statutory function of the council to give guidance to the medical profession generally on all matters relating to ethical conduct and behaviour. I have noted the statement and it will be one of the issues which I will discuss with the council when I meet them.
Under the programme for partnership, the Government is committed to the introduction of legislation to regulate the position following the outcome of the recent referenda and the Supreme Court decision in the X case. These are issues which must be addressed with care and sensitivity. I will, of course, discuss the draft legislation with the medical profession at the appropriate time.
Does the Minister agree that the medical council statement has thrown us all into a state of chaos once again? Arising from the X case there was a clear mandate in that the Supreme Court decided that a raped 14 year old girl was entitled to have an abortion. The wording was put to the people in a referendum and there was a clear mandate from the people for this House to legislate in this matter. The Minister will agree that the medical council have preempted the legislators. Was the Minister not aware that the medical council had been discussing this for the last six months? There is a Department of Health representative, Ms. Jane Buttimer, appointed by the Minister to the medical council. Would it not have been appropriate for the Minister, as the Minister with responsibility, to have taken the initiative to bring forward this promised legislation? Would the Minister not agree that by his reluctance or fear to introduce legislation he has allowed the medical council to dictate the pace and introduce ambiguity and chaos back into the system?
It would be a little bit much to expect legislation of the obvious complexity of the type involved in this case to be dealt with in the first six weeks of coming to office. The Programme for Government states that the Government is determined to have the broadest possible consultation to deal with the matter sensitively. That would be my approach. In relation to the role of the medical council, it is an independent statutory agency that has its own clear statutory duty in relation to devising ethical standards for the medical profession. I have no role in interfering with their statutory duties.
Some have their own agenda.
It is clear that some of the members of the council have their own agenda. Under the Medical Practitioners Act there is a requirement that the members of the medical council should actually practice medicine. Would the Minister not agree that some of the members who were to the fore in making this statement were semi-retired members of the medical profession?
It would be invidious of me to comment on individual members of a statutory board. I have taken cognisance of the statements they have made and will take that on board as well as all the opinions expressed in relation to the preparation of legislation promised in the Government programme.
Given that the statement by the medical council is in direct conflict with the legal and political reality, is the Minister going to preside over the importation of doctors, perhaps from Britain, to carry out these operations if we legislate to allow abortion in limited circumstances as per the X case? If the medical council do not go along with this will we have to import doctors from outside this jurisdiction to carry out the abortions?
Any doctor acting lawfully will have the protection of the law.
Not of the medical council.
There would be no question of anybody not being able to act within the tenets of the law. I will have discussions, I hope in the near future, with the medical council to seek further clarity on the import of their statement and I will have the broadest possible consultations with people, including the Opposition parties, in relation to framing the legislation concerned.