BELFAST, 26 Jan 2016: The news that Northern Ireland's attorney-general will appeal against last year's High Court ruling on abortion has been welcomed by pro-life campaigners.
John Larkin QC, the attorney-general, confirmed last night that his office will be appealing the ruling by Mr Justice Horner last November (Guardian, 25 January)
The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC) is a notice party to the case.
Liam Gibson, SPUC's Northern Ireland development officer, commented:
"We welcome the attorney-general's appeal against Mr Justice Horner's ruling that Northern Ireland's abortion laws are incompatible with the European Convention of Human Rights. As a notice party to the case, SPUC hopes to demonstrate to the Court of Appeal that the judge's ruling was confused. His claim that the law north of the border is inadequate because it is not ratified by a referendum is puzzling.
"His comments on the status of the unborn child in the law of Northern Ireland were also dubious. We will show the Court that international law, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, demands that States provide 'appropriate legal protection before as well as after birth'."
For more detailed comments or to request an interview, please contact Liam Gibson:
The communications department at SPUC's UK headquarters can be contacted on: