A WELL-KNOWN Co Derry doctor has warned that the number of abortions being carried out in the north could rise dramatically if current laws are changed.
Derry based GP Dr Anne McCloskey was speaking at a meeting organised by a new anti-abortion group, Cherish All The Children Equally.
The group promotes the sentiments expressed in the 1916 proclamation of “cherishing all of the children of the nation equally” and includes republicans who area opposed to abortion.
It has been formed by republicans to oppose the relaxation of abortion laws in the north and the repeal of the Eight Amendment of the Republic’s constitution which protects the right to life of the unborn.
While Britain’s 1967 Abortion Act does not extend to the north, abortions are currently allowed when a woman’s life is at risk or if there is a risk to her long-term mental and physical health.
The meeting was also attended by former Sinn Féin MLA Francie Brolly and his wife Anne, who revealed last year she left the party over its support for abortion in some cases.
Dr McCloskey said that if the current laws are changed the rates of abortion will increase.
She also spoke of her fears that if the law is the number of abortions in the north could mirror those in England where she claimed one in five pregnancies end in abortion.
