EU Aid for Abortion: debate in Strasbourg

EU Development Finance Instrument (Mitchell Report)

There will be a debate and vote in the European Parliament next Tuesday in Strasbourg at Second Reading on a new legal instrument to regulate overseas aid expenditure. The original text of this legislation proposed by the European Commission and accepted by the European Parliament at First Reading did not contain any reference to the controversial terms 'reproductive health' and 'reproductive rights' which are interpreted by many, including the World Health Organisation, as including abortion. However, the text which has now come back to the European Parliament from the Council of Ministers includes both these terms.

The Rapporteur for this legislation, Irish MEP Gay Mitchell, is conscientiously opposed to abortion and is concerned that common European funds, which include contributions from taxpayers in the Republic of Ireland and other countries where abortion is both illegal and
unconstitutional, should not be used to finance either the performance or promotion of abortions in Third World countries. We very much support him in this stand and staff from our Brussels office have been helping collect MEPs' signatures for amendments.

Please consider contacting your MEP/s (details available on www.europarl.org.uk ) to ask them to support the amendments (nos. 1, 2 & 3) tabled by Gay Mitchell and 62 colleagues in the vote on Wednesday to remove these controversial references from the text.

Please pray that these amendments would receive support from a broad group of MEPs and that the European Parliament would protect early human life. Please also pray for strength and wisdom for Gay Mitchell and his colleagues.

For MEPs, see here.