Pro-life campaigners are accusing MPs who voted to impose radical new abortion regulations on Northern Ireland of “a gross abuse of power”.

On Wednesday, MPs voted 253 to 136 in favour of a motion approving abortion regulations for Northern Ireland.

Under the new regime, disability-selective abortion will be available up to the point of birth for all disabilities, including cleft lip, cleft palate, club foot and Down’s syndrome. The regulations also introduce de-facto abortion on demand through to 24-weeks and allow sex-selective abortion through 12-weeks.

How did your MP vote?

On Wednesday MPs voted in favour of Abortion regulations for Northern Ireland.  Here are the voting records for Members of Parliament in the Archdiocese of St Andrews & Edinburgh.

F = pro-life vote
X = pro-abortion vote
A = abstained or absent

MP Name & Constituency Vote 17 Jun 20
Hannah Bardell - Livingston      A
Deidre Brock - Edinburgh North and Leith      A
Amy Callaghan - East Dunbartonshire      A
Wendy Chamberlain - North East Fife      X
Douglas Chapman - Dunfermline and West Fife      A
Joanna Cherry - Edinburgh South West      A
Martyn Day - Linlithgow and East Falkirk      A
Peter Grant - Glenrothes      A
Neale Hanvey - Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath      A
Christine Jardine - Edinburgh West      X
John Lamont - Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk      A
Kenny MacAskill - East Lothian      A
Stuart McDonald - Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East      A
John McNally - Falkirk      A
David Mundell - Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale      X
Ian Murray - Edinburgh South      X
Tommy Sheppard - Edinburgh East      X
Alyn Smith - Stirling      A
Owen Thompson - Midlothian      A
Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Berwick-Upon-Tweed      X

'Barbaric'

Liam Gibson, SPUC’s Northern Ireland political officer said: "The right to life is a God-given right shared by every member of the human family.

"No government, no Parliament and no head of State has the authority to take away this right.  Any piece of legislation which permits the killing of innocent children is illegitimate. An unjust law is no law at all.

“Today’s vote in the House of Commons was the final act in a gross abuse of power which has been unprecedented in recent times. By forcing the most barbaric abortion regime in Europe on Northern Ireland, Westminster has shown its complete contempt for the people of the Province, our elected representatives as well as the Constitutional settlement guaranteed by the Belfast Agreement.

“This vote, however, is not the end of the matter. Now that the abortion industry has been allowed to dictate the law in Northern Ireland, it will move on to the decriminalisation of abortion in England, Wales and Scotland. Last year there were 209,519 abortions in England and Wales, the highest number since the passage of the Abortion Act in 1967. Yet, abortion advocates are still not satisfied,” said Mr Gibson.

“Nor will the pro-life movement ever accept the killing of innocent children. We will never rest until this ruthless and illegitimate legislation is overturned. Abortion is the greatest destroyer of human life in the world today and we will never give up until this evil is brought to an end.”

An open letter signed by over 18,000 people from Northern Ireland was delivered to the Prime Minister on Tuesday by disability campaigner Heidi Crowther who has Down’s syndrome. The letter called on MPs to oppose the regulations and let the Northern Ireland Assembly decide on abortion law for Northern Ireland.

Spokesperson for Right to Life UK, Catherine Robinson said: “The battle on these regulations now moves to Northern Ireland and the Northern Ireland Assembly. MLAs must now urgently bring forward legislation to repeal these extreme abortion regulations.

Read the Right to Life coverage here. Read the SPUC coverage here. You can send feedback to your MP here:  https://righttolife.org.uk/NIvote