LABOUR WOMEN WELCOMES CROSS PARTY SUPPORT ON ROGUE CRISIS PREGNANCY AGENCY BILL
Labour Women has welcomed the cross party support for the Rogue Crisis Pregnancy Agency Bill being debated this evening, describing it as ‘one more step on the road to treating women in difficult circumstances with the respect and dignity they deserve’.
Chair of Labour Women Sinead Ahern commented: “As a young woman, I started off my pro-choice activism going undercover in rogue crisis pregnancy agencies to see whether these agencies were lying to women about the consequences of an abortion. They were then, and they still are now.
“The goal of the Bill is to ensure that any agency which provides counselling to women experiencing crisis pregnancies is registered and regulated. Currently, there is no regulation in place for such agencies which means that often very vulnerable women end up being told mistruths and lies as they explore the options in dealing with their crisis pregnancy.
“The issue is something Labour Women and other groupings have campaigned on for nearly a decade and was highlighted once more earlier this year by two brave young journalists who went undercover to reveal the true extent of what is happening in these agencies.
“As Labour members, we know that the Labour Party has a proud record of championing the rights of women. It’s a record I’m proud of and one that I know hasn’t reached its completion yet. From equality legislation to access to contraception; from the right to divorce to legislating for the X Case: the Labour Party has always been there pushing us towards a more equal and feminist republic.
“I look forward to the passing and progression of this Bill with full Oireachtas support so that we can finally put an end to this dire situation.”