Deputies seek to delay abortion law

Carl Meerveld and Liam McKenna have laid a delaying motion for next week's debate, which colleagues and the public have been quick to criticise.

They are proposing that Health & Social Care undertake a review of the drafted law and carry out research into the implications of legal challenges and changes to the law in the British Isles. After consultation they want new recommendations to come before the States next June.

Under the modernisation proposals, the limit for an abortion would double to 24 weeks and there would be no limits in cases of significant foetal abnormalities.

The two deputies said they were concerned about allowing abortions up to 24 weeks.

‘The UK is quite exceptional in having this limit,’ they said.

‘Advances in medical care enable around 60% of foetuses born at 24 weeks to survive and develop as children, raising the moral issue of whether elective abortion (by personal choice, not on medical grounds) should be allowed at this late gestation.’

They were also concerned about the update abolishing the offence of a woman procuring her own miscarriage.

‘[This] means that it would no longer be a criminal offence for a woman to abort a perfectly healthy pregnancy at any time up to birth (40 weeks’ gestation),’ they said.

‘Even though causing the death of a child immediately after birth would be considered unlawful.

The deputies believe these issues are too significant for assent to be given based on the previous Assembly’s decisions.

The matter is set to go before the States next week.