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James Brenan is absolutely right. The NI law criminalising abortion is very clear in its drafting and the SC would have no constitutional power to override it. All they could do is issue a declaration that it is incompatible with the ECHR as a way of putting pressure on the legislature to change the law - that is the way the Human Rights Act works (despite what the Daily Mail et al would have us believe!).

James Bowers - even if Leigh Day had managed to find a woman who was pregnant as a result of rape, incest etc and who was willing to go through the hellish publicity that being the claimant in a case like this would bring, the SC would have found standing but still simply issued the declaration.

The power in this whole debate is gained through public awareness and support and in that Leigh Day have been successful.

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