More than 450 doctors support academics' proposal to abortion legislation

More than 450 doctors have signed a petition to support a clause proposed by academics to abortion legislation currently being debated in Parliament.

Parliament is currently debating an amendment to the criminal code that will free doctors and pregnant women from the threat of criminal prosecution if a pregnancy is terminated to protect a woman "suffering from a medical complication which may put her life at risk or her health in grave jeopardy".

The proposal has sparked a national debate, with critics saying the government is trying to introduce abortion by stealth and proponents saying the changes are needed to ensure legal certainty. 

A group of academics has argued that the proposal as it is currently worded could be used to justify terminations due to mental health-related conditions. That argument was repeated by the nurses' union on Wednesday. 

In a statement, Doctors for Life (DfL) said they shared “the grave concerns” expressed recently by academics in a position paper arguing that the wording as proposed by the government will be loosely interpreted to allow for abortion on demand. 

They said that the text contained in the government’s amendment that specifically...