BRITISH GOVERNMENT guidelines on abortion in Northern Ireland have been defended in the High Court in Belfast, where anti-abortion campaigners are seeking to persuade a judge that the current advice should be radically redrafted.
The guidelines were issued last March, five years after the Court of Appeal ruled that the British government should inquire into the provision of termination services.
Abortion is illegal in Northern Ireland, except in circumstances where the mother’s life or mental health are considered at risk.
The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (Spuc) is seeking a judicial review of the guidelines and are being supported by other anti-abortion organisations.
James Dingemans QC, for Spuc, said the government’s guidelines contained legal errors, were vague in relation to consent and misrepresented the law in Northern Ireland. The result, he argued, was that confusion still remained.
Mr Dingemans said the guidelines had created a misleading impression by accumulative effect. For consent to be valid, there had to be discussion on the side effects in a way women could understand.
Nicholas Hanna QC, for the Department of Health, argued that the guidelines were firmly grounded in reported legal cases which had been decided by judges down the years.
Mr Hanna said legal principles on their own did not answer the question, would it be lawful to carry out a termination in every individual case. That could only be answered by the facts and circumstances known to the doctor and, provided he acted honestly, competently and in good faith, which could be assumed, and the doctor believed the woman’s health was at risk, then it would be lawful to perform a termination.
“It is important to remember that a woman is free to withhold consent and take on the risk of death or serious harm to her physical or mental health,” Mr Hanna added. The guidelines made it clear that where a doctor performed an abortion that was unlawful, they would be liable to life imprisonment.
The hearing is due to end today or tomorrow and Lord Justice Girvan is expected to reserve his decision.