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Disability abortion bill passes Committee Stage with over 99% of submissions in support of law change

The Severe Fetal Impairment Abortion (Amendment) Bill has passed Committee Stage at the Northern Ireland Assembly.

The Bill proposes removing the current grounds in the abortion regulations that were imposed on Northern Ireland by the British Government in 2020, which allow abortion for babies with disabilities such as Down’s syndrome, cleft lip and club foot.

Over 99.5% of the 9,125 submissions to a Northern Ireland Committee for Health consultation on the Bill supported the proposed law change. Only 36 were not supportive.

Strong support from the disability community and beyond

1,608 people with Down’s syndrome and their families signed an open letter to party leaders in Northern Ireland urging them to support the Bill.

Heidi Crowter, a disability rights campaigner who has Down’s syndrome and has been a vocal advocate of the amendment, said: “I’m so happy that the Bill has passed this stage and I’m so happy to have been a part of this, especially getting the chance to speak to the Northern Ireland Health Committee. I am told that the Bill will move on to the next stage and I will keep talking about this to everyone, and help where I can, because the law as it is, is downright discrimination”.

Lisa Allen from Belfast, whose son Aaron has Down’s syndrome and had a number of heart defects when he was a baby, said that nearly six years on “he is amazing his consultants and has still avoided surgery. Aaron is a loveable, strong and determined little boy. To think that now a baby like Aaron could have his life ended because of Down’s syndrome breaks my heart. He has shown that he is strong, able and determined from day one”.

Another mother, Sara McNeill, who supports the amendment and whose son, Tom, has Down’s syndrome, said: “I would urge any parent faced with the decision of what to do, not to be blinded by poor, outdated preconceptions of what Down’s syndrome is. I thought our outlook seemed bleak when our doctor first shared her suspicions about our brand new baby… but now I know better”.

Lynn Murray, spokesperson for Don’t Screen Us Out and mother of Rachel, who has Down’s syndrome, said: “By removing a small discriminatory clause, this Bill provides an opportunity to sever the connection between congenital disability and abortion, signalling a greater acceptance of people such as those who have Down’s syndrome. We look forward to an open debate and discussion on the issues in the coming weeks, with the ultimate hope that the Bill will be passed, and the Down’s syndrome community will have something to celebrate”.

The amendment will now proceed to Consideration stage.

Right To Life UK spokesperson, Catherine Robinson, said: “The amendment’s passage through committee stage is definitely good news, as it takes Northern Ireland one step closer to this important law change becoming law. At the Health Committee itself, the amendment faced opposition from abortion ideologues, and Sinn Féin and the SDLP failed to vote at all”.

“The discrepancy in the law is a direct attack on people with disabilities and represents the state’s judgement that the lives of people with disabilities are not as worth living as those without. This amendment aims to end this gross and unjust discrimination”.

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Help fight major assisted suicide and abortion up to birth threats.

Dear reader,

Despite the Leadbeater assisted-suicide Bill passing its Third Reading on 20 June, it scraped through by just 23 votes (314-291) after enjoying a 55-vote majority at Second Reading. Had 12 more MPs switched sides, the Bill would be dead. It now limps into the Lords with a wafer-thin majority, where peers can amend, delay or reject it outright.

THE CHALLENGE

Dignity in Dying, My Death My Decision and Humanists UK have poured millions into pushing assisted suicide and will fight hard to stop the Lords overturning the Bill.

At the same time, the Antoniazzi abortion-up-to-birth amendment, passed by MPs in June, also heads to the Lords. If it becomes law, it would no longer be illegal for women to perform their own abortions for any reason – including sex-selective purposes – and at any point up to and during birth.

We will be up against the UK’s largest abortion providers, BPAS and MSI Reproductive Choices (formerly Marie Stopes), who are expected to push for even more extreme changes to our abortion laws in the Lords.

WE NEED YOUR HELP

Thousands of vulnerable lives are now at stake. Battling these two threats is the biggest and most expensive effort in our history, and has drained our limited resources. To fight effectively on both fronts, we aim to raise £200,000 by midnight this Sunday (13 July 2025).

Every donation, large or small, will help protect lives, and UK taxpayers can add 25p to every £1 through Gift Aid at no extra cost.

Will you make a donation now to help protect vulnerable lives from these major threats?

URGENT
APPEAL
to protect vulnerable lives

Help stop three major anti-life threats.

Help fight major assisted suicide and abortion up to birth threats.