Justice Minister Helen McEntee authorised the Irish Prison Service to house a female-identifying biologically male prisoner in a women’s prison in March 2021, according to the records of a Freedom of Information request by the Irish Independent.

In November 2020, the director of operations in the Irish Prison Service (IPS), wrote to the Department of Justice, and said a 2007 Statutory Instrument did not explicitly require the separation of genders but “for obvious reasons of operational considerations and security” it was always the case that “both genders were separated”.

Rule 52 of the 2007 says: “Unless otherwise authorised by the minister, male and female prisoners shall be accommodated in separate areas to which prisoners of the opposite gender do not normally have access.”
The chain of records ends on February 14 with Ms McEntee’s approval sought in accordance with Rule 52 (1) of the prison rules.

Ms McEntee agreed with the Rule 52 recommendation on March 10, 2021.

A couple seeking parental recognition of the genetic mother of their son born through a foreign, commercial surrogacy arrangement are no longer pursuing their case through the High Court as they now anticipate the introduction of legislation in the area.

While surrogacy is banned in almost all of Europe, due to concerns about it commodifying babies and exploiting women, Health Minister Stephen Donnelly said last week he expects legislation to be enacted by the summer.

In court on Friday, the couple’s counsel, Nuala Jackson SC, said that, based on the information they have received, they have decided not to proceed further this case.

They were seeking a general adjournment of their case, with the ability to re-enter it if the need arises in future, she said.

Mr Justice John Jordan, who previously strongly criticised the Government in how it handled the introduction of this legislation, said it was “heartening” to see progress and wished the legislators well in dealing with a “complex area of law”.

“There is solid ground for optimism and for believing that this case and the Egans and Harry and Luke will not have to revisit the Four Courts,” he added.

A review into the State’s abortion law is set to recommend sweeping changes that would further radicalise an already extreme abortion regime. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said he would be “reluctant” to make changes but did not fully rule them out either.

It is understood the report recommends the removal of criminal measures against medics who provide abortion outside of the law.

It would also axe the mandatory three-day waiting period, retaining only a woman’s right to request one if she wants it.

Another recommendation could see even fewer restrictions on abortion when the unborn child is suffering a life-limiting condition. The current legislation allows for abortion where two medical practitioners form a reasonable opinion the foetus will likely die before or within 28 days of birth.

The review would also recommend an expansion of the range of circumstances where a woman is entitled to request an abortion without giving any reason.

Mr Donnelly said he is working closely with the HSE to bring that figure to 17 hospitals this year and to 19 early next year.

He did not say how that will square with the conscience protections of medical staff.

The Minister for Health has said he expects new legislation on surrogacy will be drafted, debated, and enacted by the time the Dáil rises for the summer recess in July.

Almost all European countries either ban or do not recognise the practice because they believe it exploits women and commodifies babies.

Minister Stephen Donnelly told the Dáil the formal drafting process is well under way. He said legislation with this level of detail and complexity would normally take several years.

He said he hopes to bring it to Cabinet soon, after which it will be debated at the Health Committee.

Four in ten adults reported experiencing ‘sexual violence’ over their lifetime, according to a major new survey from the CSO, with young women suffering the most.

‘Sexual violence’ is broadly defined in the study as “a range of non-consensual experiences, from non-contact experiences to non-consensual sexual intercourse.”

There were clear differences by sex and age in terms of experiences of sexual violence. 52% of women have experienced sexual violence compared with 28% of men.

Young women (aged 18-24) reported the highest levels of sexual violence experienced in their lifetime at 65%.

By contrast, the corresponding figure for older women (aged 65 plus) was 35%.

Dr. Clíona Sáidléar, Executive Director, Rape Crisis Network Ireland, discussed the findings on Morning Ireland and said that only some of the difference in reported levels of sexual abuse between the age groups is due to a greater ability by young people to be “able to name something”.

But she added that “the CSO would have been very careful to control for that”. She said another explanation for the difference is the existence of “emerging forms of sexual violence” including “digitally enabled” sexual abuse, which is “much higher for the younger age group”.

Only 2.5pc of women who sought abortions at the Irish Family Planning Association (IFPA) decided against a termination in the end, after the mandatory three-day wait. This is far lower than the national average of one in six women deciding not to go ahead with an abortion after an initial consultation with a doctor.

In the first three years of the abortion law, when almost 20,000 abortions were recorded nationally, there were 3,951 women, or 1 in 6, who did not proceed to a second appointment after their first, whereas for the IFPA, the corresponding figure is 1 in 40.

Data published on Wednesday show 484 women attended IFPA clinics in Tallaght and Dublin city centre in 2021 seeking abortion. Of these, 459 were eligible for a first trmester, abortion on request. Of these 12 did not make further contact after their first consultation.

This confirms what other national studies have been finding over the last few years.

A co-author of the report, Brian J. Willoughby, Ph.D., said: “It appears that sexual exclusivity between spouses provides an underappreciated foundation for the intimacies of marriage and helps spouses create a mutually satisfying relationship founded on emotional intimacy and healthy communication”.

The study also found that married men and women who have only had sex with their spouse have a nearly 45% chance of reporting a very high level of relationship stability in their marriage, compared to only 25% of married individuals with 5-9 lifetime sexual partners and only 14% of married individuals with 10 or more lifetime sexual partners.

The Oireachtas Joint Committee on assisted suicide held its first meeting, in private session, last night.

TDs and Senators will decide next week whether public hearings will begin in May or September.

The Committee must issue a final report within nine months of the first public session.

It is expected that next week’s meeting, also on Tuesday evening, will decide on whether to seek a change in its terms of reference.

Independent Senator Rónán Mullen is understood to have made a presentation suggesting the terms of reference explicitly state that it is open to the Committee to recommend no change to the existing law.

The Committee will also consider whether its title should be changed to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Assisted Suicide.

The terms of reference state that the committee will consider all “relevant considerations arising from the provision of a statutory right to provide assistance to a person to end their life and the statutory right to receive such assistance”.

Over 70 international religious groups and experts have sent a letter to the Biden Administration urging it to address the state-backed persecution of Christians and other religious minorities in Vietnam.

“Over the past twelve months, we have observed the rapid escalation of repressive measures against religious groups that resist government control. Of particular concern are the government’s intensifying efforts to force Christians to renounce their faith, crack down on house churches that do not submit themselves to government control, and coerce members of independent religious groups to join government-controlled religious organizations,” the letter says.

One of the signatories, the Law firm ADF international, said no one should be persecuted, punished, or imprisoned for expressing their faith.

Sean Nelson of ADF added: “Over the past year, we have seen an increase in serious government harassment towards religious minority faiths in Vietnam, especially Christians. The Biden Administration now has an opportunity to stand up for those most persecuted by addressing this situation directly with the Vietnamese government. We implore Secretary Blinken to take this opportunity to speak out in support of the people of Vietnam’s fundamental right to worship freely and live out their faith, without fear of punishment and persecution.”