In reply to a parliamentary question submitted by Michael Collins TD, the Minister for Health has confirmed that his department met with the Attorney General on five separate occasions since October 2022 to seek advice on proposals to ban peaceful pro-life gatherings in the vicinity of abortion facilities.
Despite repeated assurances from the Garda Commissioner and An Garda Síochána that all protests and gatherings to date outside abortion centres have been peaceful and have not contravened existing public order laws, the Government continues to press ahead with passing a draconian law that singles out pro-life citizens and criminalises them.
For the Department of Health to meet with the Attorney General five times in a matter of months on this issue is a scandal and an outrageous waste of time when one considers the overcrowding in hospitals and the excessive waiting lists for hospital appointments that families and seriously ill-patients are having to contend with at present.
Thanks to the efforts of TDs like Deputy Collins, we are able to get a better sense of where the present government’s priorities lie and how ideologically driven they are to suppress pro-life voices while taking their eye off other areas that urgently need attention to protect the health and welfare of citizens.