Bid opens to reform NI abortion laws

MPs at Westminster have launched a parliamentary bid to end the ban on most abortions in Northern Ireland.

The '10-Minute Rule Bill' aims to remove the procedure from criminal law; abortion would then be treated in the same way as all other medical procedures.

Labour MP Diana Johnson is supported by cross-party colleagues on the introduction of the bill, including conservative MP Anna Soubry who co-signed.

The bill would also reform the way abortion is regulated in England and Wales.

"It's a healthcare issue, it's about a woman deciding what is best for her andher family," says Ms Johnson.

Devolution

The reform bill would also include Northern Ireland, despite devolution.

Ms Johnson said: "Because we're talking about a breach of women's human rights in Northern Ireland, it's a matter for Westminster Parliament.

"I think it's appropriate that Westminster decides that, actually, women'srights are being breached and we need to do something about it."

Amnesty

MPs and their supporters gathered in Parliament Square on Wednesday to launch the bill.

It comes after three opinion polls commissioned by Amnesty International suggested 65% of adults in Northern Ireland agree that abortion should not be a crime and 78% of British people are in favour of decriminalisation.

Ms Johnson said the findings showed "widespread support" for the bill fromthe public.

Unborn Children

However, despite what the polls may suggest, some disagree with the introduction of the bill.

John Deighan, deputy chief executive of the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC), said abortion was not something which should be treated like a medical treatment.

Mr Deighan said this "extreme" bill would "put vulnerable women in danger".

"There is strong social controversy about abortion, particularly aroundallowing it on demand, at the expense of the taxpayer. It is thus ridiculous tosuggest that the power to regulate it be taken away from elected politicians and handed to factions of the medical profession, who won't have to answer to anyone," said Mr Deighan.

Abortion was legalised in England, Wales and Scotland in 1967 but is banned under most circumstances in Northern Ireland.

The UK government has resisted calls to step in to legislate for reform inNorthern Ireland following a Supreme Court judgment in June that found thecurrent legal framework incompatible with human rights laws.