Human Rights Watch, a pro-abortion group, has issued a report attacking Ireland’s pro-life law and calling for legalised abortion in the republic. The group has accused the Irish government of being erratic and divisive in its response to the "need for abortion". The group also suggested that Ireland’s constitutional protection for the unborn fails to meet Ireland’s obligations under international law. [Irish Examiner, 28 January] http://is.gd/7jAHR Patrick Buckley, SPUC’s consultant on the UN, said "[t]his report is dishonest in that its authors know full well that there is no such thing as a right to abortion under international law. The report is therefore more about trying to create such a right by exerting pressure on the Irish Government to permit the slaughter of the youngest and most vulnerable members of the human family in Ireland." [Patrick Buckley, 28 January] http://is.gd/7jAU3

A new morning-after pill, which manufacturers claim can be taken five days after sex, is available on prescription. Professor Anna Glaiser, of NHS Lothian in Edinburgh, Scotland, was responsible for research comparing the new drug with the current morning-after pill. Her research tested the two drugs on 2,221 women and was published in the Lancet, the medical journal. Professor Glaiser said that she does not expect the new drug, Ellaone, to reduce either unwanted pregnancy or abortion rates. Family Education Trust http://is.gd/7jBir said that it expected the drug to lead to an increase in promiscuity and sexually transmitted diseases and ProLife Alliance http://is.gd/7jBsf described the new drug as an "abortion pill". [The Times, 29 January http://is.gd/7jBAb ; The Telegraph, 29 January http://is.gd/7jBL3 ]

Mr Chris Smith, the US congressman, has accused President Barack Obama of making a pro-abortion stance his litmus test before appointing members of his administration. Mr Smith claimed that President Obama was obsessed by his abortion agenda. [EWTN, 28 January] http://is.gd/7jC3N In the same speech Mr Smith also asked: "[h]ow can so many seemingly smart, sane, compassionate and accomplished people — especially in politics — support, promote and if President Obama has his way in the pending health care legislation, lavishly fund with public dollars, the violent death of unborn children and the wounding of their moms by abortion[?]" [LifeSiteNews, 28 January] http://is.gd/7jCeI
A woman in the UK, who was acquitted of the charge of attempted murder after admitting to assisting her 31 year old daughter’s suicide, says she has no regrets. Although Mrs Gilderdale of East Sussex, has been described as still overwhelmed by grief, Mrs Gilderdale said that knowing that she did what her daughter wanted meant she had no regrets. [Daily Mail, 29 January] http://is.gd/7jCEh

Cardinal Marc Ouellet, Archbishop of Quebec, Canada, has defended the primacy of the family in the education of children. Cardinal Ouellet said that the role of the family in cultivating essential virtues was being undermined by a society aggressive to it. [EWTN, 27 January] http://is.gd/7jCLY John Smeaton, National Director of SPUC, has said that sadly Catholic leaders in the UK fail to make a similar defence of the family. [John Smeaton, 23 January] http://is.gd/7jCUg Mr Smeaton has added that he will not be contributing to the Catholic Education Service of England and Wales (CESEW) in his parish’s collection this Sunday. He says that the CESEW welcomes into Catholic schools Connexions, a British government agency. Connexions’ staff are trained to tell children that they have a right of access to abortion and contraception without parental knowledge or consent. [John Smeaton, 29 January] http://is.gd/7hQVW