Now give us the right to abortion in Northern Ireland

[Elendon]

This is a great piece from the Guardian.

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/may/26/now-give-us-the-right-to-abortion-in-northern-ireland

There are Irish and British women still travelling to obtain abortions in the island of Ireland.

(Boo to Donegal).

NI is beginning to look like the last stand of the conservative (small c) past.

Let's not be too hard on Donegal. South Donegal is actually counted as part of Sligo/Leitrim and they voted Yes. Had they been included with the rest of the county it would have been different.

Also Janice Turner in The Times:

www.thetimes.co.uk/article/abortion-has-left-us-a-disunited-kingdom-c3g82dcsr?shareToken=094fe50886382da8a0caeb8a4bcd1804

As someone who was raised in Northern Ireland our holidays were to Donegal and I loved going there.

I will be a reluctant visitor in the future.

Of course the DUP will make this political and use the right wing in the USA (bible belt) to help them.

This is your government in the UK. The UK government is in power only by dent of the support of the DUP, which are the majority in Northern Ireland.

So all of you need to help those women who do not have equal access to reproductive healthcare that you have.

It's wonderful that Ireland has said YES, a resounding YES, to the removal of the 8th amendment, but the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland now lag behind.

In a twist of fate, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland will be exporting women to Ireland to obtain abortion facilities.

There's a charity called Abortion Support Network who support women with info and costs to travel to GB for abortions- NI women, Isle of man women and women from the Republic (til the law actually changes). They're worth a look.

Times piece this morning, looks hopeful of a chance to change the law in NI

Theresa May is facing open revolt from senior Tory women over abortion after Ireland’s historic vote to lift a ban on terminations.

Penny Mordaunt, the women and equalities minister, and her four predecessors urged the prime minister to allow a free vote in parliament to reform Northern Ireland’s draconian abortion laws.

Karen Bradley, the Northern Ireland secretary, has insisted abortion law is a “devolved matter” and ruled out a free vote. But sources said that she, too, is privately supportive of a change in the law.

More than 130 MPs are prepared to back an amendment to the new domestic violence bill to allow abortions in Northern Ireland, co-ordinated by Stella Creasy, Labour MP for Walthamstow

www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/leading-tory-women-revolt-against-may-0c9nbvgll

Shareable link to the Times - which was their front page article:

www.thetimes.co.uk/article/leading-tory-women-revolt-against-may-0c9nbvgll?shareToken=f0109b09498b2f9a0e1110f0e2a50555

I'm very surprised this thread doesn't seem to have attracted much interest. Maybe it's because people think that the rest of the U.K. can't do anything about NI because of devolution.It looks as though women MPs believe otherwise. Is there anything we can do to support them?

www.abortionrights.org.uk/repealed-now-we-look-to-northern-ireland/ Judith Orr writing on the Abortion Rights website about this.

It's really worth joining them - they are very active and keep momentum going after a victory like yesterday's.

This is so important and hopefully now is a better time than any other to push for women in NI to have the same rights as the rest of the UK and now Ireland too

I'm very surprised this thread doesn't seem to have attracted much interest. Maybe it's because people think that the rest of the U.K. can't do anything about NI because of devolution.It looks as though women MPs believe otherwise. Is there anything we can do to support them?

Errol I was so excited to see the Times cover I started another thread sorry.
Abortion is not a devolved issue (as in, it’s not decided in NI) it is still a Westminster issue. So this is amazing that Tory women are standing up to be counted like this so publicly and so sympathetically reported. But on a worrying note, might Jacob Rees Mogg might be tempted to try to slap all that down by restricting the time limit?
i’m going to write to the women MPs individually to let them know how many women they speak for and write to my constituency MP to ask when they are going to bring forward change. Also agree thAt Abortion Support Network are fantastic.
I feel that we need a new Act though, the 1967 Act needs modernisation.
Have to keep editing out myself from writing ‘ideally’ there. I mean if not now, then when??

I'm somewhat hopeful that the Irish referendum vote will make JRM and his ilk realise they are totally out of step with how normal people think (and vote) in the 21st century. Or even better, that he doesn't realise and his stance marginalises him and reduces his fan base.

Errol totally agree out of step. But the anti choice people in Westminster are the lawmakers and not shy of trying to impose their will. They will be very discomfited by this Irish result and looking to hit back. If May comes out with a pro choice position for NI, and if Rees Mogg wants to get her out and thinks he could get support, he could be tempted to try to act in his instincts to run an anti choice campaign as part of a leadership thing. I don’t know how likely it is, don’t know the numbers likely to support him, but I’d be amazed if a reactive anti choice move was not being planned.

Nadine Dorries Mp Tory anti abortion campaigner bigging up JRM re leadership
www.westmonster.com/dorries-extraordinary-if-moggs-name-isnt-in-mix-for-tory-leadership/

If JRM becomes tory leader we are all doomed.

I was wondering how this 'yes' would affect NI. The pressure is on, we hope.

It won’t happen, unfortunately, because the Tory party needs the DUP support and that bunch of misogynistic, bible bashers will NEVER permit women to have control over their own bodies.

Why would you post that PositivelyPERF? Such a negative comment.

If Ireland can overwhelmingly by 2 to 1 overturn a misogynistic, paternalistic ruling, then so can Northern Ireland.

After all, Northern Ireland is part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

#don'tturnyourbacksonNI

Abortion law is not a devolved matter. Or shouldn't be. You want to stay part of the UK, accept uk law on this.
TM should insist.
Sadly, she won't.

I really hope you're correct @Elendon but I do think @PositivelyPERF is being realistic about politics and the DUP.

I think Teresa May needs the DUP vote too much to go up against them on this and risk them withdrawing their support for her minority government.

Arlene Foster has said today that it is for the devolved government to decide- but there is no devolved government- I think her plan is to just keep stalling it

Elendon I live in NI and I’m realistic about the misogynistic attitude of the duppers and many of my fellow county men/women. They will fight tooth and nail to prevent gay marriage, a woman’s right to her own body and anything else they can drag out of the bible.

I'm in NI and while I'm hopeful that the referendum will put pressure on the UK government to intervene, I can easily see the DUP doing a u turn and forming a government with Sinn Fein to avoid that happening by using the petition of concern.

They're career politicians to their core.