· As a historic bill to decriminalise abortion in Northern Ireland is launched in parliament, women who have been affected by the current ban have appealed to MPs for reform.
· The testimony collected by the British Pregnancy Advisory Service, bpas, and Alliance for Choice NI includes women who have been forced to continue pregnancies with no chance of survival to term
· A video released today features a young Northern Irish woman, Emma, 18, telling MPs that abortion “is not a devolved issue” while 28 weeks pregnant with a baby with a fatal foetal anomaly. She was denied an abortion in Northern Ireland and felt unable to travel for treatment in England.
· Other women speak of the difficulties of travelling to England to access care, and one woman from Belfast describes having to wait over three hours in an airport while bleeding.
· Campaigners call on MPs from all parties to “listen to the voices of the women of Northern Ireland” and unite behind moves for reform.
