Northern Ireland, which currently protects the right to life of the unborn child in the vast majority of situations, is to examine introducing 
abortion on the grounds of foetal abnormality and possibly rape and incest.
Alliance leader and Health minister David Ford MLA said that he is to initiate a consultation on possible changes to abortion law in Northern Ireland that could permit terminations in cases where a diagnosis indicates that the child is unlikely to survive for long after being born, the Irish Times reports.
Mr Ford said yesterday that the 12-week consultation should begin by Easter next year at the latest.
He decided to hold the consultation following cases of two women, one pregnant with twins, who complained about being denied abortions in Northern Ireland after doctors told them their babies were unlikely to survive outside the womb.
The 1967 British abortion Act does not apply in the North. About 40 legal abortions take place annually in Northern Ireland, where termination is permitted where it is “necessary to preserve the life of the woman or there is a risk of real and serious adverse effect on her physical or mental health, which is either long-term or permanent”.
Mr Ford said yesterday that any changes would apply to a narrow range of cases. “There are clearly some very difficult cases in Northern Ireland which are not covered by the law,” he told BBC Radio Ulster’s Stephen Nolan programme.
“What we have to do is carry out a consultation on the potential for change,” he said.
Mr Ford said he would also consider whether changes to the law should also take in victims of rape or incest. “It’s clearly a slightly wider area than just the issue of fatal foetal abnormality,” he said.
The move has sparked outrage among pro-life campaigners.
Bernadette Smyth from the Precious Life Group said: ” I am outraged that there is going to be a consultation in Northern Ireland on whether some children will live and whether some will die.
“I do believe this will open the floodgates. This is not care, this is killing.”
Any changes would require the support of the Northern Executive and Assembly.
A spokesman on behalf of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), the largest party in the Assembly, said : “This is a most serious and sensitive matter. The issue of abortion generates high emotions on both sides of the argument whether that be pro-life or pro-choice.”
He added: ” The DUP is a pro-life party and fundamentally opposes the 1967 Act and the delivery of abortion on demand which it affords. It is estimated that 90,000 lives have been saved in Northern Ireland due to the more balanced approach we take to abortion compared to Great Britain.
“We want to see as few abortions as possible take place in Northern Ireland.”
He noted criminal justice laws’ provisions on abortion.
“We should always remember that behind the statistics and arguments lies the lives of fathers, mothers and unborn children. Everyone should approach this issue with sensitivity and compassion.”