Cora Sherlock 
A new Government natality initiative to increase birth rates to curb the increasing economic demands resulting from Ireland’s ageing population has been criticised as being ‘inconsistent’ with the removal of the Eighth Amendment, a pro-life group has said.
The initiative, led by Minister for Children Katherine Zappone, plans to look at ways of encouraging families to have more children. The first key policy of the Government’s new strategy will be the national roll-out of ‘baby boxes’ for all new parents.
Commenting on the initiative, Cora Sherlock of the Love Both campaign said: “Genuine initiatives designed to assist and support new parents are obviously a good thing. But the timing of this latest announcement from the Government is not accidental. I think a lot of people will find it more than a little strange that at the very time certain cabinet ministers are proposing to introduce abortion on demand, these same ministers are proposing ‘baby boxes’ for all new parents.
“Can Katherine Zappone not see the irony and inconsistency in trying to encourage parents to have more children while backing a referendum that would open the door to wide ranging abortion?”
Ms Sherlock added that babies should never be seen as a means to an end, as it will lead to “assessing human worth through a purely utilitarian lens”.
