Earlier this year, the Northern Ireland Assembly voted on the Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) Bill and it passed Second Stage by 58 votes to 29.

The Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) Bill would introduce censorship zones outside abortion clinics and hospitals offering abortions across Northern Ireland. This would be entirely unnecessary and disproportionate.

Under the private member’s bill introduced by Green Party leader Clare Bailey MLA, it would be a criminal offence to “influenc[e] a [person seeking an abortion], whether directly or indirectly” within “safe access zones”. This would criminalise offers of help or advice as well as peaceful protests and, unlike other attempts to create censorship zones around abortion clinics, this Bill does not specify the precise size of such zones.

The Northern Ireland Assembly Committee for Health is now undertaking a consultation on the Bill and is seeking submissions from the public. 

The consultation closes on Friday 12 November 2021. Full information on the consultation is available here. 

If you use the easy-to-use tool above to respond, your response will then be sent to the Northern Ireland Assembly Committee for Health. To find out how the Northern Ireland Assembly Committees handle your personal data, please see its privacy policy. 

We have included a suggested submission as part of the tool, however if you have time, we recommend writing this in your own words and adding in any other points you feel are necessary to cover. 

Click the button above to make your submission to the consultation now.