High Court President Nicholas Kearns has rejected a last minute bid to stop the Oireachtas voting on abortion legislation.

The litigants - including former MEP Kathy Sinnott - have been told the matter is currently on the floor of Leinster House and the courts do not have any entitlement whatsoever to interfere at this stage.

It lasted all of 5 minutes. Lay litigants Mark McCrystal and Jane Murphy from Dublin approached the bench and submitted papers asking High Court President for leave to stop the government usurping the will of the Irish people.

The group wants to stop the vote on abortion legislation and to remove provisions they say have already been rejected by the people of Ireland in the 2002 referendum.

President Kearns said he was satisfied he did not have the jurisdiction to grant any such relief as the matter was the preserve of the legislature and under the doctrine of the separation of powers the courts have no authority to intervene at this stage.

It is believed the group is now trying to urgently bring its application to the Supreme Court.