The Life Institute has said that attempts by the government to claim a consensus at the abortion hearings in favour of legislation is "a disturbing attempt to railroad through abortion despite the mounting expert evidence against the proposal."

At the close of the hearings, Minister of State Alex White immediately declared that there was a "high level of consensus" from the expert witnesses, a comment described by Niamh Uí Bhriain of the Life Institute as being "inexcusably incorrect".

"There was no such consensus at the hearings. The Master of the busiest maternity hospital in Ireland, the Rotunda, told the hearings he and his fellow consultants had major concerns with legalising abortion on suicide grounds. Another leading Obstetrician, Dr John Monaghan, warned that the proposal could make 'mindless terminators' of doctors," she said.

Jerry Buttimer, Fine Gael TD, at the hearings

"Legal experts argued persuasively that the Bill was unconstitutional and would allow for abortion until birth, and that the European Court did not oblige Ireland to legalise abortion. Furthermore, top psychiatrists said the measure was not evidence-based and just plain wrong."

"On top of all that, the country's leading suicide researcher, Prof Kevin Malone, a renowned figure in global efforts to tackle suicide, warned that the abortion Bill could 'normalise suicide'," she pointed out.
"So no consensus then, but just a determination by this government to push an abortion agenda despite the evidence and the serious concerns of so many leading medical experts," commented the pro-life spokeswoman.  

Minister White's comments were followed by an astonishing performance by the Chair of the hearings, Jerry Buttimer TD, on RTÉ's Morning Ireland.

Like Alex White, Buttimer insisted that legislation would go ahead and tried to insist that there was agreement amongst the witnesses in relation to the Bill.

"If Buttimer and White can draw this wholly incorrect conclusions from the hearings then its clear that, sadly, the whole thing was a farce and that Kenny and Reilly do not want to hear the expert evidence," said Ms Uí Bhriain.