Sinn Féin’s Martin McGuinness today called for religion to be kept out of politics in the wake of demands by a unionist for government to uphold "God’s law" on abortion.
Democratic Unionist MP Iris Robinson, wife of First Minister Peter Robinson, criticised pro-choice campaigners who have demanded a relaxation of the abortion laws in Northern Ireland.
But today Deputy First Minister Mr McGuinness, who shares the post with Mr Robinson, came out against the comments.
“I think it was a mistake,” Mr McGuinness said of the remarks. “In the society that we live in now with many newcomers to our shores, and in many democracies throughout the world, we have a situation where many people within society believe in different things and believe in different gods.
“So what god are we talking about?
“Is it the Free Presbyterian god, is it the Church of Ireland god, is it the god that Catholics adhere to, is it the Mormon god, is it the Jehovah’s, the Islamic?”
In the North, pregnancies can only be terminated where there is a major threat to the health of the woman and Mrs Robinson argued against any change to the law to bring it in line with the rest of the UK.
She said: “The Government has the responsibility to uphold God’s law morally . . . . The Catholic Church as well as the Evangelicals and all the other churches across Northern Ireland all stand by what we say - that abortion is morally wrong.”
She added: “The Government are there to represent the morals of the scriptures.”
Mrs Robinson caused controversy recently after she branded homosexuality an abomination.
PA