General Irish politics discussion thread

Hotblack Desiato · 16-06-2026 09:14PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124555781#Comment_124555781

Why is Toibin comparing the number of abortions now with the number in 2018?

Abortion was illegal in Ireland in 2018 🙄

midlander12 · 16-06-2026 10:31PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124556194#Comment_124556194

I presume he means the numbers of Irish abortions in the UK, which was always likely to have been understated by Irishwomen giving English addresses. AFAIK since legalisation the numbers here have always been 6-7000+.

L1011 · 16-06-2026 10:43PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124556467#Comment_124556467

And by going to Amsterdam or using WomenOnWeb etc

The figures are what everyone expected and very stable

midlander12 · 17-06-2026 11:51AM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124556501#Comment_124556501

I'm not sure what figures were expected but I don't see that as being the main issue anyway. Ultimately these are women making up their minds not to proceed with a pregnancy, for whatever reason. If Toibin is so concerned about the figures, maybe he could have a think about why so 'many' women are making that decision rather than trying to take that right away from them.

Hotblack Desiato · 18-06-2026 03:36PM

The bill moves on to committee stage, but 70 TDs voted against, which is surprisingly high. It seems we're back to the previous status quo where a small but very vocal anti-choice lobby has half the Dail quivering like jelly

I hope the electorate are taking note and will well remember the 'closet' anti-choicers at the next election

The likes of Troy coming out with complete bullcrap about 'numbers of lives saved' etc etc are just revealing their true anti-choice colours. They voted along with the legislation in 2018 for no other reason than they didn't have the guts to oppose it

The 10,000 or whatever figure is nonsense. It completely fails to take into account women who miscarry, who may not actually have been pregnant in the first place, who went on to abort via another medical practitioner, who ended up having a surgical abortion in the UK or elsewhere.

Arguably the only real effect of the 3-day wait is to increase the numbers of Irish women having later, expensive and more medically difficult abortions in the UK

Rjd2 · 18-06-2026 04:00PM

Bleak very bleak, will be very interesting to see what Irish politicians end up at this.

https://www.independent.ie/county/wicklow/ireland-to-host-secret-gathering-of-political-tech-finance-and-defence-elites-leaked-report/a/157371354.html

Rjd2 · 18-06-2026 04:31PM

.dp

midlander12 · 18-06-2026 07:08PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124560817#Comment_124560817

They're all looking over their shoulder at II and Aontu, and it's old story of who shouts loudest gets heard first.

Troy has already been re-elected since the revelations about his non-declaration of extensive property interests, so I suspect this won't affect him very much.

Hotblack Desiato · 19-06-2026 01:08AM

Whatever about II (few enough signs of them gathering any momentum though), Aontu are a complete joke and basically a family operation - although nothing like as successful as the well-known Kerry one

midlander12 · 19-06-2026 09:54AM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124562166#Comment_124562166

I'd agree re both, but as I said it's who shouts loudest. You'd think Galway West would have given FG a bit of backbone, but no. FF were always in thrall to the bead-rattlers so they didn't surprise me.

dulpit · 19-06-2026 12:11PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124561267#Comment_124561267

Are II and Aontu taking their votes though?

According to the last poll from Sunday Independent 2 weeks ago, parties are as follows, with their general election 2024 numbers in brackets:

FF: 16 (21.9): Down 5.9
FG: 19 (20.8): Down 1.8
SF: 20 (19): Up 1
SD: 12 (4.8): Up 7.2
Lab: 3 (4.7): Down 1.7
Aon: 6 (3.9): Up 2.1
II: 9 (3.6): Up 5.4
GP: 3 (3): N/C
PBP/S: 2 (2.8): Down 0.8
Independents & Others: 10 (15.5): Down 5.5

Yes, the FF/FG combined vote is nominally down by 7.7 points, and the II and Aontu vote is up by 7.5. But the Soc Dems are up by 7.2 points, SF are up by 1 and Labour/PBP are only down by 2.5 combined, so where is that vote coming from?

I'd argue the 5.5 points down for independents and others is more likely to have gone to II & Aontu than to Soc Dems.

It's possible that the people looking over their shoulders at II & Aontu are making the same error that the Tories and Labour have in the UK - they moved right to try and get some of the Reform vote, even though those voters were never going to vote for a mainstream party of government anyway.

FF & FG would be better served by eyeing up the chunk of people who are embracing the Soc Dems as a better chance for actually gaining votes back I'd argue.

L1011 · 19-06-2026 12:22PM

Aontu are effectively unable to transfer polling figures in to votes as their candidates are, with limited exceptions, unknowns, weirdos or both. They are sticking with a Councillor in Wexford who tried to ask someone coming to him for assistance on a date for instance.

It's a personality cult around one person who only has so many family members to run in other seats.

They did very poorly in the recent by-elections. They have two TDs, one of which got in on poor transfer management by FF and FG; and only one or two candidates that will be near the top end of the table on FPV beyond that.

Water John · 19-06-2026 12:27PM

Is it simply, that when left to their own devices, the majority of both FF and FG TD's are fairly socially conservative?

Podge_irl · 19-06-2026 12:46PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124563126#Comment_124563126

They clearly are not.

midlander12 · 19-06-2026 12:58PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124563085#Comment_124563085

I'm not disagreeing with any of that, and I'd also agree with other posters that it's really II and not so much Aontu they're worried about. However, II emanate from the same largely rural background as the bulk of FF and FG TD's and irrespective fo whether they're taking their votes or not, they fear they will in the future.

As regards the only actual voting recently, the FF vote fell in Galway West from 17% to 9% and the II vote increased from 9% to 21%. Apart from Noel Grealish's absence, it's hard to imagine much of that gain was at FF's expense give that Noel Thomas was ex-FF himself.

Water John · 19-06-2026 01:00PM

Vote tally

Yes FF 12 FG 11

No FF 30 FG 23

https://www.thejournal.ie/abortion-td-votes-7074713-Jun2026/

dulpit · 19-06-2026 01:34PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124563185#Comment_124563185

At a minimum they seem to be on this specific topic. Although I do wonder if some people voted against it not because of it's merits, but because it came from Sinn Féin.

Podge_irl · 19-06-2026 02:04PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124563331#Comment_124563331

On this specific topic it would never have been up to the Dáil if FG had not pushed it through in the first place.

I suspect it had more to do with being a SF motion, but regardless the fact that this is even a debate is because the TDs are not socially conservative.

astrofool · 19-06-2026 07:12PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124563331#Comment_124563331

Also, like Mercosur, if they know it will be passed, it's a free vote to keep some of the more hardline constituents on side.

I'm glad SF had the whip in place here.

Loafing Oaf · 19-06-2026 08:28PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124564140#Comment_124564140

looks like SF will have the casting vote over whether there is any further liberalisation of abortion in this dail or the next…

Hotblack Desiato · 19-06-2026 09:39PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124563085#Comment_124563085

Meaningless with a general election 3.5 years away.

Hotblack Desiato · 19-06-2026 09:44PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124563217#Comment_124563217

Depressing.

Hotblack Desiato · 19-06-2026 09:56PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124564140#Comment_124564140

Were you glad when they all abstained on the SD's abortion bill a couple of weeks ago?

Yet again, SF reek of rank hypocrisy, left alliance my foot!

dulpit · 20-06-2026 02:06AM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124564642#Comment_124564642

Oh I agree polls are meaningless, but I do think there's something to be said against the more conservative FF or FG politicians trying to tack right to try and woo the II or Aontu voters. They're not going to get them, so don't tack that way.

General Irish politics discussion thread

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