AFP May 27, 2018 Pressure mounted on Sunday for British-ruled Northern Ireland to liberalise its strict abortion laws after a historic referendum in the neighbouring Republic of Ireland overturned its ban.

More than 66 percent of voters in the Republic of Ireland backed repealing the constitutional ban on terminations, triggering scenes of tearful jubilation in Dublin after an emotional campaign.

British lawmakers said Northern Ireland, where abortions are only allowed if the physical or mental health of the mother are at severe risk, should now follow suit. Women who have unsanctioned abortions in Northern Ireland face life imprisonment under 19th-century legislation still in place.
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But was this carefully thought out? How will this affect the Irish economy? Abortion rights obviously means fewer children born to Irish women.
The home construction industry will suffer with less demand for five bedroom houses containing bunk rooms. The sweet shops near schools will see a reduction in patronage. The clothing industry will be forced to cut back on children’s items. The supermarkets will face diminished demand, resulting in shorter opening hours, reduction in staff, reduction of quantities ordered from wholesalers and farmers. McDonalds will be left with a surplus of Happy Meal items. Seminaries will no longer produce an excess of priests who formerly were a major Irish export.

And looking a bit further into the future of unrestricted abortion, what about Guinness, pubs, craftsmen who produce banjos and Uilleann pipes, and the restaurants that specialise in First Communion brunches?

While the Irish medical practitioners may see a noticeable increase in abortion requests, by medical tourists from Northern Ireland, Malta, Vatican City, Poland, etc., there is still the question of how to compensate for the expected lower birth rate in Ireland?

The obvious solution to maintaining current population growth is to encourage immigration. The Irish people just need a referendum to decide which nationalities they would like to welcome. Maybe more citizens of Poland or Portugal? Some from North and southern Africa to lend variety to the population mix? This could be a very interesting sociological/ethnological process for the Irish people.