LONG-AWAITED changes to Jersey’s abortion law will not be brought forward until later this month, it has been confirmed.
Assistant Health Minister Andy Howell said the proposed new Termination of Pregnancy Law was still being drafted and had been subject to a “slight delay”, despite assurances last year that it would be lodged before the end of December.
“The proposed new termination of pregnancy law is in the process of being drafted,” Deputy Howell said.
“It was scheduled to be lodged by end of 2025, but this has been subject to a slight delay. It is anticipated that it will be lodged in late January in order that it may be debated by this Assembly prior to the commencement of the election period. The date of debate will, however, be subject to Scrutiny review process.”
The update comes after the Health Minister pledged in 2025 to bring the legislation forward before the end of the year, following a public consultation on proposed reforms to Jersey’s Termination of Pregnancy Law.
Those proposals include removing the current requirement for patients to be “distressed” in order to access an abortion, reducing the number of mandatory consultations from two to one, and allowing nurses and midwives to carry out consultations in early pregnancy.
The draft law would also extend the legal limit for abortion to 21 weeks and six days. However, terminations beyond 12 weeks and six days would still not be provided in Jersey, except in urgent medical cases, because of workforce and facilities constraints.
