Should abortion law be devolved? That is a question that requires calm, sober consideration away from the hue and cry of party politics. Unfortunately, views on the issue appear to have split rather acrimoniously along party lines.
The contentious bit is the danger of divergence between the law in Scotland and the rest of the UK. If the power is devolved, then one day Holyrood or Westminster could change the law, on the legal time limit for abortion for example, and this in turn would create the conditions for a cross border trade in terminations as we have seen between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK. The SNP has no plans to change the law, but that does not mean future governments could not do so; the same goes for Westminster.
Labour has argued all along that the measure is being rushed through without consideration of the potential consequences. As the Shadow Scottish Secretary Ian Murray put it, “a woman's right to choose should be based on medical evidence and not by where they live". During the Smith Commission talks, the decision on whether to devolve the power was put on hold and it was agreed that there should be substantive further discussions about it.
Then last summer, the Scottish Secretary David Mundell announced in a surprise move that the UK and Scottish Governments were minded to move ahead with it after all. The SNP, who have shown no great enthusiasm for the policy, did not want to pass up a new power, and the Conservatives seemed to feel it made sense to devolve abortion law given that the rest of health matters are devolved.
Now Labour has said it plans to use its group in the House of Lords, where the Tories lack a majority, to force a delay. They want the devolution of abortion law suspended for a year, to allow for a proper consultation on its potential consequences.
The SNP and Conservatives are not terribly impressed that the unelected Lords are to be used in this manner, and they have a point.
But by stitching up a deal between themselves, have they acted properly? Lord Smith said of abortion law that "further serious consideration should be given to its devolution and a process should be established immediately to consider the matter further". It is at best debatable whether private chats between ministers and officials in the UK and Scottish governments are truly in the spirit of that recommendation.
Human rights campaigners have voiced misgivings about devolving this power and we too believe it should be carefully weighed. The danger of women travelling from one part of the UK to another for abortions, is a real one. Women in Scotland, as the smaller of the two jurisdictions, could be targeted more vociferously by anti-abortion campaigners if the power were devolved.
True, the Scottish Parliament does have control over end of life legislation so it is anomalous that abortion remains reserved, but it is more important to avoid unintended consequences from devolving abortion than it is to have neat boundaries in the devolution settlement.
It is disappointing that this issue has become mired in party wrangling. There is a case for delay, to take full account of all parties’ views and those of wider interest groups.
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