Increasing pressure on government to legislate for X Case

The government is under increasing pressure to legislate for the X Case, allowing for medical terminations in cases where a mother's life is at risk.

It follows the death of 31-year-old Savita Halappanavar in University Hospital Galway following a miscarriage.

There are calls for a free vote in the Oireachtas, allowing TDs and Senators to vote according to their conscience and not their party's position.

Fianna Fáil Senator Averil Power says she would support holding such a vote.

“I think on an issue like this, you couldn’t but have a free vote.

“One of the Sinn Féin TDs said he would break the whip, Labour are generally in favour of legislating for X but some of my colleagues in the Seanad have said they won’t and Fine Gael seem to be deeply divided on the issue.

"That's only natural because the country is divided. We do need to deal with it and there is no excuse for not actually addressing it,” she said.

Meanwhile, the government may consider the establishment of an appeal panel for women who have been refused a termination in Irish hospitals.

According to The Sunday Times, the proposal will be discussed by the cabinet over the next fortnight.

In the meantime though, Sinn Féin says it is putting forward a private members motion in the Dáil next week calling on the government to legislate for the X Case.

The party's deputy president Mary Lou McDonald says legislation needs to be put in place so that doctors and patients alike know where they stand when these circumstances arise.

She said: “The issue at play here isn’t so much the broader issue of abortion rights per se. The issue here is that the legislature, the government and politicians, have to put in place the legal clarity and framework that was identified as far back as 20 years ago.”