Abortion status quo not enough

In response to your Page One article last Monday, Micheál Martin appears to be applying the same logic to the issue of abortion as the Government does to personal insolvency, the dreaded moral hazard.

If you legislate allowing some of the population the right to access, then they’ll all be at it. Guess what, they are all at it, well a significant number are — four per week — just out of sight and apparently out of mind. The solution of maintaining the status quo is not good enough.

If I surmise correctly from his comments, Mr Martin believes when it comes to abortion, no law is better than bad law, while on Page 13 of the same edition he states: “I think that goes to the core of a republic, in terms of the citizen being at the centre.” In relation to tobacco, drink, and food he believes there should be “robust championing of citizens in all of that debate”. When it comes to abortion I believe there is a need for robust debate in the Dáil through the legislative process.