The Transport Minister says it will l be a long road back to the Fine Gael Parliamentary Party for Junior Minister Lucinda Creighton, if she votes against the abortion legislation.

The new Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill will complete all stages in the Dáil later.

Some of the 165 amendments tabled will be debated before the key vote at around 10pm, when all eyes will be on Minister Creighton.

She could be joined by others such as Michelle Mulherin, John O'Mahony or John Paul Phelan in voting against the Bill.

Speaking to Newstalk, Transport Minister Leo Varadkar says Minister Creighton will face an uphill battle to get back into the parliamentary party, if she loses the whip tonight, "There is a possibility that they could come back to the party, but that's not easy. You'd have to get a vote in the parliamentary party to readmit you, you'd have to get your own party members to select you, and I think that may be an significant issue for Lucinda in the future, given that she represents a very liberal constituency actually, both in terms of voters, and the party membership are very liberal in that constituency."

Minister Varadkar told Newstalk Breakfast that he himself will be voting with his conscience, but admits his opinion on the issue changed after the Savita Hallapanavar controversy: