Putting a blanket ban on abortion on the grounds of suicide will inevitably result in another X case, according to a consultant psychiatrist.
Dr Veronica O'Keane, of the Beaumont Hospital in Dublin and recently appointed head of national perinatal psychiatry in the UK, was speaking at the final press conference of the Alliance for a No Vote yesterday.
She said the proposed amendment was not about allowing the threat of suicide lead to abortion on demand.
"Suicide is a rare occurrence during pregnancy, as are medical conditions that may be exacerbated by pregnancy. But this amendment is about the exception, not the rule."
She said the proposed amendment puts a constitutional ban on any woman with mental ill-health, but not medical ill-health, from having a termination where pregnancy is putting her life at risk.
"To make a distinction between mental and medical health in this way is contemptuous of both individuals with psychiatric illness, and women or children who become destabilised as a consequence of a pregnancy that may have resulted from sexual violence." said Dr O'Keane.
The Council of the Psychological Society of Ireland has also opposed the distinction between mental and physical health implied in the proposed legislation. "It is the view of the Society that threats of suicide must be considered as presenting a serious risk of loss of life," the council said in a statement.