Left Image – Shutterstock: Irish Government Building, Dublin; Right Image – Wikimedia Commons: Holly Cairns, Leader of the Irish Social Democrat Party
Ireland’s three-day waiting period before an abortion, introduced as part of the legislation following the 2018 repeal of the Eighth Amendment, remains one of the most significant safeguards in the country’s abortion law. The measure requires women to wait three days after their initial consultation before proceeding, a pause intended to allow time for reflection before the life-altering decision.
The waiting period was presented during the referendum campaign as a key restriction designed to balance access to abortion with protections for unborn children. Despite pressure from some politicians and campaigners to remove it, evidence suggests that this short interval has had a tangible impact.
Data from Ireland’s Department of Health shows that in 2022 more than 2,600 women who attended an initial consultation did not return to complete the abortion procedure. Across the four years from 2019 to 2022, over 6,500 women made the same choice. These figures suggest that the period of reflection is not merely symbolic, but a meaningful opportunity to save the lives of babies.
Calls to abolish the waiting period have reignited, with Social Democrats leader Holly Cairns recently questioning the Government on its future. The Health Minister, Jennifer Carroll McNeil, noted that a review of the 2018 legislation had been completed, and that the Irish government has already expanded abortion services since the law’s introduction, including provision of abortion in all maternity hospitals, increasing community providers, and continuing the remote consultations introduced during the pandemic. Buffer zones around clinics have also been implemented, further facilitating access.
These developments make the waiting period more important than ever. With fewer barriers to accessing abortion, a brief pause before proceeding serves as one of the few remaining checks in the system. More than 100 doctors, including leading obstetrician Dr Trevor Hayes, have spoken in favour of retaining the measure, pointing out that a period of reflection is standard practice before many significant medical procedures.
The waiting period has saved nearly 7,000 babies. There is no reason for Cairns to want to scrap it. This is typical of the pro-abortion movement: liberalisation for liberalisation’s sake.
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