Critiquing recent abortion law and policy in Northern Ireland

Abstract

The lack of a clear and accessible law specifically outlining when abortion is legal in Northern Ireland has led to confusion and misinformation among the public, health professionals, politicians, lobby groups and the media. Hard won Departmental Guidance and legal challenges to it provide evidence of religious and cultural bias at an institutional level against abortion in any circumstances. The introduction of Northern Ireland's first private abortion clinic in 2012 has brought the debate into sharper focus. This commentary explores recent developments in abortion regulation and the failings of the two legislatures in Belfast and Westminster to live up to both domestic legal standards and international human rights law on reproductive health.

Explaining gender equality difference in a devolved system: The case of abortion law in Northern Ireland

“…This "nested newness" (Chappell, 2011, Mackay, 2014 also means that greater regional powers have not provided venues for women's rights or LGBT activism, such that abortion and same sex marriage legislation still lag far behind the rest of the country. Not only has Stormont not moved on abortion, there has been an almost regressive tendency in policy formation Explaining gender equality difference in a devolved system: the case of abortion law in Northern Ireland 6 (Bloomer and Fegan, 2014). Due to the fact that the 1967 Abortion Act was never extended, the foundation for legal termination of pregnancy in the province is provided by the 1861 Offences Against the Person Act.…”

To what extent is abortion legislation a key challenge for health equity in Northern Ireland?

“…The debate over the decriminalisation or legalisation of abortion in Northern Ireland has been ongoing for many years -with an escalation in intensity in recent times. The opening of the first Marie Stopes centre in Belfast in late 2012 1 , almost coinciding with the death of Savita Halappanavar in the Republic 1 brought the debate to the fore. Opposition to liberalisation is rooted primarily in the majority Christian beliefs of the population.…”

“…The Marie Stopes clinic provides the same service as the Northern Irish NHS, in that it has to follow the same guidelines. 1 A major barrier to women accessing abortion services in Northern Ireland is that there is currently no guideline document available which clarifies the extent of the law. Such a document was produced by the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety (DHSSPS) in 2009 after years of lobbying by the Family Planning Association, resulting in a number of court hearings and appeals.…”

“…Her family still blame this indecision, and lack of guidance, for her death. 1 Medical staff are also entitled to conscientiously object to giving advice or performing abortions on religious or moral grounds, and this is more likely to happen in some councils than others. All these factors create a "postcode lottery" situation where women can expect different standards of care depending on which county they live in.…”

“…This means that despite being UK taxpayers, they still have to pay for an abortion in the other British nations as services are provided on area residentsonly basis. 1 The cost of an abortion in the UK can be prohibitively expensive for women in Northern Ireland -further suggesting that this may contribute to health inequity in the country as only those with the money to pay can access reproductive healthcare. Those who cannot may resort to seeking out illegal options and risk lengthy prison sentences.…”