Sinn Féin could make up the numbers on Eighth Amendment

The numbers could not be more stark, nor more difficult to swallow for die-hard Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil members intent on keeping Sinn Féin in the political wilderness.

If Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin want to change the law to allow unrestricted access to abortion up to the 12th week of pregnancy if the Eighth Amendment referendum passes, they will have to rely on — and share the spotlight with — their arch enemy Sinn Féin to do so.

And even then, any Dáil vote on the potential post-referendum 12-week limit will come down to the wire, with the parliamentary division between those in favour of 12 weeks and those opposed likely to be as little as three votes, meaning the outcome remains far from clear.