Belfast, : Northern Ireland's Justice Minister is misleading the Province over public support for abortion, says the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC), the United Kingdom's main pro-life group.
SPUC described as "manipulative and misleading" claims by David Ford, the justice minister, that there is substantial public support for a liberalisation of the Province’s abortion law.
Liam Gibson, SPUC Northern Ireland development officer, accused the minister of disregarding the results of his own consultation on the legalisation of abortion for children diagnosed with severe disabilities.
Mr Gibson said: "The minister’s claim that there is substantial support for his plans is contradicted by evidence.
"Figures released by the Justice Department show that the the vast majority of those whose responded to the consultation rejected the minister’s proposals. There were 1,500 letters opposed to a change in the law, while only 133 letters supported the proposals. In addition, there was a petition of 23,622 signatures and 20,197 postcard delivered to the department.
"Mr Ford appears to be determined to disregard public opposition to his plans to allow the killing of unborn children judged to be unworthy of the legal protection given to other babies.
"The thousands of people who took part in the consultation to defend the right to life of the most vulnerable of unborn babies will not simply go away. We will ensure that the politicians in the Assembly will hold the minister to account", concluded Mr Gibson.
Liam Gibson, SPUC's Northern Ireland development officer, can be contacted on:
The communications department at SPUC's UK headquarters can be contacted on: