Delegates representing a number of European countries have increased pressure on Ireland to further liberalise its already radical abortion regime. On Wednesday, Ireland was appearing before the UN Human Right Council for its latest ‘periodic’ review.

At the meeting, the Austrian representative recommended that Ireland “ensure that the three-year review of the Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018 is comprehensive and directed at providing a human rights-compliant framework for abortion, including by identifying and eliminating barriers impacting marginalized groups”.

A representative from Denmark recommended the Government “ensure that the three-year review of the Termination of Pregnancy Act focuses on ways to expand access to voluntary termination of pregnancy, both in law and in practice”.

The Iceland representative recommended that Ireland “expand access to abortion and repeal the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act”; and the Swiss representative recommended the establishment of “a plan of action to guarantee accessibility and availability of risk-free abortion services”.

While not making a specific recommendation in this regard, Egypt expressed concern about the legal changes relating to abortion “affecting the protection of the right to life”, and recommended Ireland “strengthen policies to support the family as the basic and natural unit of society”.