Irish Abortion Law in Human Rights Court

Three Irish women who travelled to the UK for abortions are taking Ireland to the European court of human rights for preventing them from terminating their pregnancies in their own country.

The women claim "the exceptionally restrictive nature of Irish law on abortion jeopardised their heath and their well-being".

Ireland - which has been torn apart by a series of abortion referendums over the past 20 years - has the most restrictive abortion laws in Europe.

Last year more than 6,000 Irish women had abortions in England and hundreds more went to countries such as France, Spain and the Netherlands. The Irish Family Planning Association, which is funding the case, denounced Ireland's "hypocrisy in exiling women in crisis pregnancy".

The lawyer and campaigner Ivana Bacik said: "Travelling abroad for an abortion placed enormous emotional and financial burdens on the three women taking the case."

She said the grounds for taking the case were "very strong" and added: "Recent opinion polls certainly show that people in Ireland are increasingly recognising abortion should be legal in a range of different circumstances."

Anti-abortion groups said they would seek a fresh referendum to prevent the government from legislating on the issue.