Catholics urged to lobby TDs against abortion

Catholics have been urged to lobby local TDs to reject any liberalisation of abortion laws as Fine Gael and Labour brace for a divisive debate on the issue.

In a pastoral letter delivered in 1,360 parishes yesterday, the Catholic Bishops of Ireland said the Government “is under no obligation” to legislate for abortion due to a 2010 European Court of Human Rights ruling.

An expert group is expected to report as early as this week on how the State can comply with the ruling, which found Ireland failed to implement the 1992 X Case ruling to enable women to have an abortion when their life is at risk during pregnancy.