The British Government has repeatedly and recently confirmed that abortion law has long been a devolved matter, and it should stay that way.
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The veteran LGBT campaigner says the former Prime Minister’s aides “were terrified I might try and kiss him, or superglue myself to the Cabinet table”.
“What is clear however is that even amongst proponents of reform there is currently no consensus on what that reform should entail.”
It wouldn’t work even in its own terms, because it would have the effect of making the 1967 Abortion Act redundant.
“There’s a substantial minority in the Republic who feel disenfranchised…who feel very alone…who feel no-one speaks for them any more.”
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It’s a counter-intuitive take – but it’s what the sum of opinion polling in recent years tends to suggest.
It looks to be the least bad medium-term means of settling the future of abortion laws in Northern Ireland.
It knows that it can continue the policy of staying out of the institutions in Belfast and London without damaging its long-term strategy. Unionists need them to work.
These concerns, however, often only add to the need for us to remain ethically and democratically engaged, particularly regarding the most emotive cases.
Easter approaches. And here is Rees-Mogg on suffering, abortion, the Tridentine Mass, faith and politics…and why Brexiteer MPs won’t roll over on a final EU deal.
His debut as a phone-in host offered an indication that – despite being posh and old-fashioned – he has an exceptional ability to communicate in modern Britain.
Rather than going over the heads of the Unionist parties, the Government needs to find a way to address their concerns.