Despite its promises of compassion, the Government’s latest budget has failed to deliver for pregnant women and new mothers who need it most. Budget 2026 could have been the point at which Ireland started to turn towards a genuinely life-affirming social policy - one that meets women where they are, supports them through crisis, and helps new families. Instead, it consisted of minor adjustments and missed opportunities.

The Pro Life Campaign’s pre-budget submission to the Minister for Finance laid out a number of suggestions, including calls for renewed funding for balanced pregnancy counselling that includes informing women of positive alternatives to abortion; for the roll-out of more practical help for new mothers; and for the introduction of Child Benefit payments in the final months of pregnancy — a simple recognition of the reality that the costs of having a baby begin before birth.

While there are some gains for families in this year's budget like modest increases in the Qualified Child Payment, and higher income thresholds for the Working Family Payment, these are small changes, not the deeper reforms that could alleviate pressure on pregnant women who are in challenging circumstances.

In our submission we reminded the Government that compassion for women means more than access to abortion — it means offering real alternatives, financial and emotional, so that no woman ever feels she has “no choice.” There is no mention of restoring funding for life-affirming pregnancy support organisations that was cut off after 2019, or of further resourcing perinatal palliative care pathways for parents who continue their pregnancy after a prenatal diagnosis of a life-limiting condition. For all the talk of fairness, this year's budget fails to appreciate the struggles and concerns of women in unplanned pregnancy who are often alone and uncertain where to turn for help.

Budget 2026 could have done a whole lot more to show that our Government values both mother and child. Instead, it is another reminder that when it comes to supporting positive alternatives to abortion, we have a long way to go.  As always, we urge you to raise this issue with your public representatives whenever that opportunity arises.

A one-year-old boy born at just 21 weeks has been officially named the world’s most premature baby by Guinness World Records.

Nash Keen was born 133 days early at the University of Iowa Health Care Stead Family Children’s Hospital in Iowa City, Iowa, to parents Mollie and Randall Keen.

A typical pregnancy lasts 40 weeks, with babies considered premature if born before 37 weeks and “micro-preemies” if before 26 weeks. When he entered the world, baby Nash weighed just 10 ounces (283 grams) and measured 24 centimeters (9 inches) long.

US Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s would-be assassin was sentenced last Friday to eight years in prison after pleading guilty to attempting to assassinate the judge for his pro-life views.

Nicholas John Roske (29), who now goes by the name Sophie Roske, was arrested near Kavanaugh’s home in June 2022. He was carrying a Glock 17 pistol, several rounds of ammunition, a knife, zip ties, pepper spray and duct tape. He told the arresting police officers that he was upset with Kavanaugh for his stance in overturning Roe v Wade.

Since the leaking of the Dobbs Supreme Court decision in 2022 and subsequent overturning of Roe v. Wade, over 100 pro-life centres in the US have been attacked by firebombings and vandalism. Many pro-life volunteers have also been physically assaulted, including a female volunteer who was shot in the back as she walked away from a home she had just canvassed on behalf of the pro-life cause.

The very lenient sentence handed to Roske for attempting to assassinate a Supreme Court judge has drawn strong criticism over the past week.