GSD MP Elliott Phillips has said that he will be voting “yes” in Thursday’s abortion referendum.

He says that he believes that “women have the right to make a decision as to if, or when they become a mother and ultimately what they should do with their own bodies.”

Mr Phillips issued the following personal statement this morning:

“Our community will soon vote at a referendum on whether or not to activate an Act which our parliament passed by majority. The question for the people is whether or not our community should bring into force laws which provide for the termination of pregnancies in Gibraltar under certain circumstances. I was the parliamentary Leader of the Opposition when my party decided not to support the change in the law for specific reasons. As parliamentary leader, I was responsible for setting out approved opposition policy. That position was set after lengthy debate at the Executive and after consulting our Members. Like other political parties we have members on both sides of this debate and reached the position by majority after very careful consideration. We opposed the law on the basis that the Government had misrepresented what this proposed law was about and that it went well beyond what was necessary to make the current law constitutionally compliant. As we explained during the election, we believed some change was necessary to cater for the extreme circumstances of rape, incest and fatal fetal anomaly. In April 2019 90% of GSD members voting at the Party AGM also decided that there should be a referendum if any change was contemplated beyond what was constitutionally necessary. This is what this referendum is about and the Party Executive has decided that individual members and MPs should have a free vote on the referendum question and could express their own personal views on this important subject during the campaign. This is what I am now doing.

“I believe you deserve to know how I will vote and I owe it to you to briefly explain where I stand on the issue. I realise that my position will not be agreeable with the NO campaign and it is my sincere hope that whilst you may disagree, you will understand that I cannot stand back and not have the courage of my convictions to explain my view.

“I do not make my view known to seek to persuade anyone or invite you to vote in a certain way - it is a highly personal question which evokes strong feelings in both directions and both sides of the campaign have attempted to articulate their views in a respectful way. This matter has created great tensions amongst our community and it is my hope that on the morning of the 25th June, whatever the result, we can put this matter behind us and restore community, unity and compassion for those whose argument has not carried the support of the majority. Above all, we are a compassionate and caring community and we must at all costs respect the result.

“In short, the reason why I will personally vote yes is because I fundamentally believe that women have the right to make a decision as to if, or when they become a mother and ultimately what they should do with their own bodies. It is not for anyone else to impose their doctrine or views on people who wish to make a highly personal and complex health care decision. A decision to terminate a pregnancy often occurs after taking medical advice, seeking support from family and friends and if the person has a faith from religious leaders. This is not about taking an easy option or populism as some jurists have proclaimed, this is about autonomy, health care, reproductive rights and creating a safe environment for women to take advice and to have support in place to provide for termination of pregnancies. The choice at this referendum is to keep the law as it is or to change it in the way this new law proposes. Given those options respectfully, I will vote so that women have the right to freely be able to make a decision about their own health care which in my view best protects their rights next Thursday.”