February 20 - Sale of Contraceptives in Ireland

This Day in History: 20 February 2020

 

20 February 1985

 

35 years ago, today, the Irish government defied the Catholic Church by approving the sale of contraceptives. In a 1973 case, McGee vs The Attorney General, the Irish Supreme Court ruled that a constitutional right to marital privacy would allow the use of contraceptives. However, the government was slow to change the law to reflect this decision, due to the fact that conservative forces and the Roman Catholic Church put them under pressure. A change finally came in 1980, when the Health (Family Planning) Act ensured that contraceptives could be sold to customers with a medical prescription, but many people still saw this law as too strict, and thus a movement began to make contraceptives more accessible.

 

The government began to debate the changes, but Catholic Church leaders opposed them, and warned that increased access would lead to moral decay in Ireland, with more illegitimate children, abortions and sexual transmitted diseases. Some politicians were even threatened with violence, if the legislation was voted for. On this day, the opposition were defeated with an 83-80 vote, and the new law made non-medical contraceptives available without prescription to people over 18. It was still illegal to advertise these contraceptives and the use of the pill birth control was restricted, but the vote marked a major turning point in Irish history, as the Catholic Church had been defeated by the government.

 

Want to find out more about the history of contraceptives in Ireland? Click here for more information.