The Women and Equalities Committee (WEC) report into abortion law in Northern Ireland is at odds with the submissions received and raises serious questions for devolution, campaign group Both Lives Matter said today.

A majority of the committee called for law change in Northern Ireland to allow abortion in cases of ‘fatal foetal abnormality’, even though an estimated 88% of submissions from the public in the North did not support change.

Co-Founder of the Northern Irish group Both Lives Matter, Dawn McAvoy, said the proper place for a debate on this is in the North, not in the committee rooms of Westminster. She said there is an attempt to “impose abortion law change” by Westminster, while “completely bypassing our elected representatives”.

She added: “On the face of it, the recommended changes appear to be limited, but there is no guarantee that any resulting legislation would not be extended to provide abortion access, far beyond these recommendations. It is important the public are aware that the proposals today are a small part of a wider campaign to radically alter abortion law across the UK to remove any protection for all the lives involved in a pregnancy”.