NI abortion laws need radical reconsideration, court says as appeal dismissed
Deputy Supreme Court president Lord Mance said the present law ‘clearly needs radical reconsideration’
June 7 2018
Northern Ireland’s strict abortion laws are incompatible with human rights legislation and need “radical reconsideration”, the UK’s highest court has urged.
A majority of a seven-strong panel of Supreme Court justices ruled the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (NIHRC) had no legal standing to bring its challenge against the abortion law.
But, by a majority, the judges also strongly expressed their opinion that the current laws are incompatible with article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) – the right for respect for private and family life.