If you’re fed up with endless bickering over Brexit, spare a thought for the citizens of Ireland. The government here recently announced plans for a new referendum on abortion, currently prohibited by the Constitution with a few limited exceptions.
So the starting pistol has been fired on what is sure to be twelve months of hyperventilating hipsters, jangling rosary beads and a stampede from both the pro-choice and pro-life lobbies towards the moral high ground. The majority of the population – broadly in favour of a liberalisation of the law but against abortion in all circumstances – is already donning figurative hard hats and bracing for the worst.
The vote is likely to be held in mid 2018. A glimpse of what lies ahead was provided by a surreal face-off recently between the new Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar and the pop group LCD Soundsystem. The band had finished a three-night residency in Dublin when the Taoiseach – who has somewhat unconvincingly sought to style himself in the Justin Trudeau mould – popped backstage to say ‘hello’.
But rather than the Bono-style bonhomie he had presumably anticipated, he was reportedly confronted by Al Doyle, the ensemble’s guitarist.
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