The Government will today be told to agree to an independent public inquiry into Savita Halappanavar’s death by Thursday or face a European court battle.

A Government TD said it’s “barbaric” that women have to travel across the water to have abortions because successive Governments have had “no appetite” to face up to a Supreme Court ruling made 20 years ago.

Changes to abortion laws will be debated in the Dáil in April, as independent and small party TDs introduce a motion this week calling for legislation to give effect to the X-case judgment.