Burton: I want doctors, not lawyers, to address difficult abortion issues
The Tánaiste Joan Burton says society needs to ask itself if it is right that people have to go through a lawyer to get medical treatment.
The Labour Party leader's comments come following the case of a clinically dead pregnant woman being kept on life support.
She has re-iterated Labour Party support for repeal of the 8th amendment which gives equal rights to a woman and the unborn.
Speaking to journalists in an end-of-year interview, the Tánaiste says over a period of time cases will emerge throwing up the most agonising and difficult dilemmas.
Ms Burton says the people offering "right-on solutions" on either extreme of the debate are offering a disserrvice.
She says Irish people need to think seriously and reflect on how to address this.
She said: "People I want to see around the bed are the doctors, not the lawyers. I think as a society we have to ask ourselves a fundamental question 'Hold on, is this right?'"
She went on to claim the 8th amendment does not serve women well when issues of their safety, their life and health are in question.
Acknowledging the difficulties Fine Gael and the Taoiseach faced in dealing with the 'X' case in legislation in this government, Joan Burton says with developments in modern medicine cases are going to arise that no constitution can set down an answer for.
She addd the Constitution should be for other purposes rather than assessing medical treatments.
