Miss D abortion - Ruling is a victory for humanity

THE High Court decision to grant a 17-year-old girl the right to travel to England for an abortion, was sensible and humane — and the right thing to do.

Given the tragic circumstances of the Miss D case, a girl who is 18 weeks pregnant with a baby expected to die soon after birth from anencephaly, which means a major part of the brain is missing, it would be a travesty if the courts stopped her from leaving the country.

In his compassionate, sympathetic and landmark ruling, Mr Justice Liam McKechnie said the right to travel abroad took precedence over the right of the unborn in the Constitution.