The Abortion (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2020 (revoked)
UK Statutory Instrument 2020 No. 345 — creates 2 criminal offences.
- Made
- 25 March 2020
- In force from
- 31 March 2020
- Extent
- Not stated
- Subject
- Miscellaneous
- Made under
- Northern Ireland (Executive Formation etc) Act 2019
Explanatory note
(This note is not part of the Regulations) — published with the instrument by the department that made it. © Crown copyright, reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
These Regulations make provision for the purpose of regulating abortions in Northern Ireland following the repeal, by section 9 of the Northern Ireland (Executive Formation etc) Act 2019, of sections 58 and 59 of the Offences against the Person Act 1861. The Regulations authorise abortions to be carried out by a ‘registered medical professional’, as defined in regulation 2, in a place referred to in regulation 8 where one of the grounds set out in regulations 3 to 7 is fulfilled. The remaining regulations deal with certification and notification of various matters by registered medical professionals, offences, conscientious objection and consequential amendments. A full impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no, or no significant, impact on the private, voluntary or public sector is foreseen.
Offences created by this instrument
- A person who, by any means, intentionally terminates or procures the termination of the pregnancy of a woman otherwise… regulation 11(1) · Status not determined · Requires proof of a state of mind
- Certification of opinion by registered medical professional regulation 9(6) · Status not determined · Requires proof of a state of mind
What Parliament said about it
Hansard was searched for this instrument by name and returned nothing. That is the ordinary outcome: an instrument laid under the negative procedure is usually never debated, and becomes law without a word said about it in either House.
How Parliament handled it
This instrument required the approval of both Houses before it could take effect.
- Procedure
- Made affirmative — both Houses had to approve it
- Could either House amend it?
- No. A statutory instrument is put to each House as a whole thing, to be approved or not. Neither House can change a word of it.
- Committee
- Drawn to the special attention of the Houses by a scrutiny committee
Procedural history
- Instrument created 25 March 2020
- Instrument made (signed into law) 25 March 2020
- Laid before the House of Commons 25 March 2020 · Commons
- Laid before the House of Lords 25 March 2020 · Lords
- Motion to approve the instrument tabled by the Government 27 March 2020 · Commons
- Instrument comes into force as law 31 March 2020
- Considered for English votes for English laws (EVEL) certification 17 April 2020 · Commons
- Not certified under the English votes for English laws (EVEL) process 17 April 2020 · Commons
- Considered by the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee (SLSC) 21 April 2020 · Lords
- Drawn to the special attention of the House by the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee (SLSC) 21 April 2020 · Lords
- Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee (SLSC) draws the special attention of the House to the instrument on the grounds that it is politically or legally important or gives rise to issues of public policy likely to be of interest to the House 21 April 2020 · Lords
- Further information published by the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee (SLSC) 21 April 2020 · Lords
- Considered by the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments (JCSI) 6 May 2020 · Commons, Lords
- Drawn to the special attention of the Houses by the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments (JCSI) 6 May 2020 · Commons, Lords
- Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments (JCSI) draws the special attention of both Houses to the instrument on the grounds that it is defectively drafted 6 May 2020 · Commons, Lords
- Further information published by the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee (SLSC) 7 May 2020 · Lords
- Motion to approve the instrument tabled by the Government 7 May 2020 · Lords
- Further information published by the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee (SLSC) 13 May 2020 · Lords
- Further information published by the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee (SLSC) 13 May 2020 · Lords
- Motion to approve the instrument withdrawn 14 May 2020 · Commons, Lords
- Instrument revoked by another instrument 14 May 2020
- Instrument replaced by revoking instrument 14 May 2020
- Instrument stops being law 14 May 2020
- Procedure concluded in the House of Commons and the House of Lords 14 May 2020 · Commons, Lords
- Approval period ends 17 May 2020
From Parliament's Statutory Instruments service. Parliamentary material is reused under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0.
Check the source
- This instrument on legislation.gov.uk The authoritative text, including amendments made since
- Other instruments from 2020