The regulations that were brought forward by the Northern Ireland Secretary did not reopen the debate about abortion but instead ensured compliance with the legal duties that Parliament required when it passed the Abortion (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2020 on 17th June 2020. For avoidance of doubt, I opposed these regulations.
But regardless of the vote being lost, the law is the law. The situation currently is that women are still unable to access decent quality abortion and post-abortion care in Northern Ireland, regardless of their situation and this is not right. This is why these regulations were brought to the House of Commons yesterday and why I voted in support of them.
I hope this explains my thoughts and position on this and am grateful for you getting in touch to share your thoughts with me on such a sensitive subject.