UNITED KINGDOM, November 20, 2017 (SPUC) — It has emerged that the Government’s plan to offer free abortions to Northern Ireland women, and to pay for travel costs, extends to minors in the province – and that they can be carried out without parental consent.
The move has been slammed by campaigners and Northern Ireland politicians, with one MLA warning that it “could perpetuate abusive and illegal relationships.”
Repeated betrayals
The Minister for Equality abandoned the UK Government’s long-standing policy of neutrality on abortion in June, when she committed to providing funding for abortions carried out on women coming to England and Wales from Northern Ireland, in response to an amendment to the Queen’s Speech by Labour MP Stella Creasy. Then, in October, the Government announced that it would cover the cost of travel to the UK for women on low incomes and the setting up of a centralised telephone booking system – an extension which targets poorer women, as there is no additional funding to support women who want to keep their babies. The extension was made with no parliamentary scrutiny or public consultation.
“In their best interests”
It has now emerged that the extended scheme will
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