Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill 2013: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage

Debate resumed on amendment No. 150:

In page 17, to delete lines 33 to 39, and in page 18, to delete lines 1 and 2 and substitute the following:

“Offences

22. (1) It shall be an offence—

(a) to intentionally or recklessly end a pregnancy without the consent of the pregnant woman,

(b) for a person other than an appropriately qualified practitioner to perform a surgical medical procedure for the purposes of ending a pregnancy.

(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (1) of this section—

(a) no pregnant woman, or third party facilitating or assisting her, shall be held criminally liable for procuring or carrying out a medical procedure that leads to the ending of a pregnancy, and

(b) no appropriately qualified practitioner shall be held criminally liable for carrying out a medical procedure that leads to the ending of a pregnancy.

(3) A person guilty of an offence under this section shall be liable under indictment to a fine or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 14 years, or both.

(4) A prosecution for an offence under this section may be brought only by or with the consent of the Director of Public Prosecutions.”.

Question put: "That the words proposed to be deleted stand."

The Dáil divided: Tá, 110; Níl, 13.

Tá

Bannon, James.
Barry, Tom.
Breen, Pat.
Broughan, Thomas P.
Bruton, Richard.
Burton, Joan.
Butler, Ray.
Buttimer, Jerry.
Byrne, Catherine.
Byrne, Eric.
Cannon, Ciarán.
Carey, Joe.
Coffey, Paudie.
Collins, Áine.
Conaghan, Michael.
Conlan, Seán.
Connaughton, Paul J.
Conway, Ciara.
Coonan, Noel.
Corcoran Kennedy, Marcella.
Costello, Joe.
Coveney, Simon.
Creed, Michael.
Creighton, Lucinda.
Daly, Jim.
Deasy, John.
Deenihan, Jimmy.
Deering, Pat.
Doherty, Regina.
Donohoe, Paschal.
Dowds, Robert.
Doyle, Andrew.
Durkan, Bernard J.
English, Damien.
Farrell, Alan.
Feighan, Frank.
Ferris, Anne.
Fitzgerald, Frances.
Fitzpatrick, Peter.
Flanagan, Charles.
Griffin, Brendan.
Hannigan, Dominic.
Harrington, Noel.
Harris, Simon.
Hayes, Brian.
Hayes, Tom.
Healy-Rae, Michael.
Heydon, Martin.
Hogan, Phil.
Howlin, Brendan.
Humphreys, Heather.
Humphreys, Kevin.
Keating, Derek.
Kehoe, Paul.
Kelly, Alan.
Kenny, Enda.
Kenny, Seán.
Kyne, Seán.
Lawlor, Anthony.
Lowry, Michael.
Lynch, Ciarán.
Lynch, Kathleen.
Lyons, John.
McCarthy, Michael.
McEntee, Helen.
McGinley, Dinny.
McGrath, Mattie.
McHugh, Joe.
McLoughlin, Tony.
McNamara, Michael.
Maloney, Eamonn.
Mathews, Peter.
Mitchell, Olivia.
Mitchell O'Connor, Mary.
Mulherin, Michelle.
Murphy, Dara.
Murphy, Eoghan.
Nash, Gerald.
Naughten, Denis.
Neville, Dan.
Nolan, Derek.
Noonan, Michael.
Ó Ríordáin, Aodhán.
O'Donnell, Kieran.
O'Donovan, Patrick.
O'Dowd, Fergus.
O'Mahony, John.
O'Reilly, Joe.
O'Sullivan, Jan.
Penrose, Willie.
Perry, John.
Phelan, Ann.
Phelan, John Paul.
Quinn, Ruairí.
Rabbitte, Pat.
Reilly, James.
Ring, Michael.
Ryan, Brendan.
Shatter, Alan.
Sherlock, Sean.
Spring, Arthur.
Stagg, Emmet.
Stanton, David.
Timmins, Billy.
Tuffy, Joanna.
Twomey, Liam.
Varadkar, Leo.
Wall, Jack.
Walsh, Brian.
White, Alex.

Níl

Boyd Barrett, Richard.
Collins, Joan.
Daly, Clare.
Donnelly, Stephen S.
Flanagan, Luke 'Ming'.
Halligan, John.
Higgins, Joe.
McGrath, Finian.
Murphy, Catherine.
Nulty, Patrick.
Pringle, Thomas.
Ross, Shane.
Wallace, Mick.

Tellers: Tá, Deputies Paul Kehoe and Emmet Stagg; Níl, Deputies Clare Daly and Joan Collins.

Question declared carried.

Amendment declared lost.

An Ceann Comhairle

In view of the decision in respect of amendment No. 150, amendments Nos. 151 to 154, inclusive, cannot be moved.

Amendments Nos. 151 to 154, inclusive, not moved.

An Ceann Comhairle

Amendment No. 155 was already discussed with amendment No. 150.

Minister for Health (Deputy James Reilly)

I move amendment No. 155:

In page 17, to delete line 39, and in page 18, to delete lines 1 and 2.

Amendment agreed to.

An Ceann Comhairle

Amendment No. 156 cannot be moved in view of the fact that amendment No. 155 has been agreed.

Amendment No. 156 not moved.

An Ceann Comhairle

Amendment No. 157 was already discussed with amendment No. 150.

Deputy Colm Keaveney

I move amendment No. 157:

In page 18, between lines 2 and 3, to insert the following:

“(5) For the avoidance of doubt, it is hereby declared that subsection (1) shall not apply in relation to a pregnant woman availing of any medical procedure in the course of which, or as a result of which, an unborn human life is ended.”.

Amendment put and declared lost.

Deputy Joe Higgins

I move amendment No. 158:

In page 18, to delete lines 3 to 13.

Question, "That the words proposed to be deleted stand", put and declared carried.

Amendment declared lost.

Deputy Catherine Murphy

I move amendment No. 159:

In page 18, after line 13, to insert the following:

"Offences of threat, harassment, endangerment and false imprisonment

24. (1) In the case of a person who, without lawful excuse, makes to another a threat, by any means intending the other to believe it will be carried out, to kill or cause serious harm to—

(a) a woman as a result of her having sought to obtain or having obtained medical treatment under this Act,

(b) a medical practitioner as a result of his or her having provided or sought to provide medical treatment under this Act, or

if that person is found guilty of an offence under section 5 of the Act of 1997, the court shall take such conduct into account as an aggravating factor in determining any sentence to be imposed on him or her for the offence.

(2) In the case of a person who, with a view to compel another to abstain from doing which that other has a lawful right to do under this Act, wrongfully and without lawful authority—

(a) uses violence to or intimidates that other person or a member of the family of the other, or

(b) injures or damages the property of that other, or

(d) watches or besets the premises or other place where that other resides, works or carries on business, or happens to be, or the approach to such premises or place, or

(e) follows that other with one or more other persons in a disorderly manner in or through any public place,

if that person is found guilty of an offence under section 9 of the Act of 1997, the court shall take such conduct into account as an aggravating factor in determining any sentence to be imposed on him or her for the offence.

(3) In the case of a person who, without lawful authority or reasonable excuse, by any means including by use of the telephone, harasses by persistently following, watching, pestering, besetting or communicating with—

(a) a woman as a result of her having sought to obtain or having obtained medical treatment under this Act,

(b) a medical practitioner as a result of his or her having provided or sought to provide medical treatment under this Act, or

if that person is found guilty of an offence under section 10 of the Act of 1997, the court shall take such conduct into account as an aggravating factor in determining any sentence to be imposed on him or her for the offence.

(4) In the case of a person who, intentionally or recklessly engages in conduct which creates a substantial risk of death or serious harm to—

(a) a woman as a result of her having sought to obtain or having obtained medical treatment under this Act,

(b) a medical practitioner as a result of his or her having provided or sought to provide medical treatment under this Act, or

if that person is found guilty of an offence under section 13 of the Act of 1997, the court shall take such conduct into account as an aggravating factor in determining any sentence to be imposed on him or her for the offence.

(5) In the case of a person who intentionally or recklessly without that other’s consent—

(a) takes or detains, or

(b) causes to be taken or detained, or

(i) a woman seeking to obtain or having obtained medical treatment under this Act,

(ii) a medical practitioner seeking to provide or having provided medical treatment under this Act, or

(iii) a third person involved in assisting or facilitating a person referred to in subparagraph (i) or (ii),

as a consequence of that medical treatment, if that person is found guilty of an offence under section 13 of the Act of 1997, the court shall take such conduct into account as an aggravating factor in determining any sentence to be imposed on him or her for the offence.".

Amendment put and declared lost.