Minister defends abortion legislation after ‘unsettling’ case

A Fine Gael minister has said the case of a raped suicidal teenager who was denied an abortion is "deeply unsettling", but that it is hard to say if a referendum will be held on such an issue.

Junior finance minister Simon Harris defended the Government’s Protection of Life during Pregnancy Act, which provides for terminations in limited circumstances.

But the Wicklow TD said any decision on whether a referendum was needed on legalising abortion further would depend on a report due next year on how the new law has been applied.