Bishop Martin Hayes Following contact by a parishioner based in Cavan, Bishop Martin Hayes of Kilmore diocese confirmed he would meet with pro-life groups to discuss future collaborations.
Local Catholic Liam DePaor shared the response he received from the diocesan secretary with The Irish Catholic. It read: “Bishop Martin wishes to acknowledge your email and to say that he is willing to meet with local pro-life groups to discuss how best to work together with the Church and pro-life groups at national level.”
This comes as Cavan has seen a large increase in abortion rates according to 2020 figures. It is one in seven counties where there is one abortion for every 10 births. Dublin, Louth and Waterford had the highest abortion rates in 2019 and in 2020. These counties have now been joined by Longford, Cork, Limerick and Cavan – making up the seven counties.
Births in Cavan bucked the national trend and actually increased by about 5% in 2020, but Cavan abortions increased by 39%.