Following trenchant criticism at the UN, the state must now fulfil its human rights obligations and strengthen access to abortion care, says IFPA
The Irish Family Planning Association (IFPA) has backed the renewed criticism of Ireland’s abortion law by UN member states (10th November 2026).
During the fourth cycle of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) by the UN Human Rights Council, nine states were critical of Ireland’s abortion law. Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland called on Ireland to take action to strengthen access to abortion care.
IFPA Director of Advocacy and Communications, Maeve Taylor said: “As a leading provider of sexual and reproductive healthcare, including abortion care, the IFPA views the trenchant criticisms of Ireland’s abortion law during today’s fourth Universal Periodic Review as an imperative to reform the law.”
Maeve Taylor said: “Almost twice as many states made recommendations on abortion at this review, compared to the last UPR cycle in 2021. UN member states have clearly noted that the recommendations of the statutory review of the abortion law published in 2023 have been ignored.
“Member states have urged the decriminalisation of abortion providers and removal of the mandatory waiting period, which were recommended in the O’Shea report on the abortion law more than three years ago.
“Today’s criticisms at the UPR reflect the failure by the state to fully align our abortion law with international human rights. This inaction is unacceptable.
“The IFPA calls on the government to accelerate action to implement the recommendations made at the UN Human Rights Council.
“These include the nine recommendations on abortion care access, as well as a call by Mexico for Ireland to guarantee access to sexual and reproductive health services for adolescents, and calls by Burkina Faso and Colombia for supports for survivors of female genital mutilation (FGM) to be mainstreamed within the healthcare service.”
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Press Contact: Erin Murphy, Communications Officer (086) 795 2167, or email [email protected].
Notes to Editor
- Ireland’s human rights record is being examined today as part of the United Nations Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR). The UPR is a peer-review process in which every UN member state undergoes a review every four and a half years. Ireland’s previous reviews took place in 2011, 2016 and 2021.
- During Ireland’s forth UPR review on 10th November 2026, the following nine UN member states criticised Ireland’s abortion laws and called for Ireland to strengthen access to abortion care: Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland.
- Among the specific recommendations:
- Canada and Sweden called for the removal of the mandatory three-day waiting period before abortion.
- Iceland called for full decriminalisation of abortion.
- Norway and the Netherlands called for the full implement of the Independent Review of the Operation of the Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018 (the O’Shea report).
- Mexico called for guaranteed access to sexual and reproductive health services for adolescents.
- Burkina Faso and Columbia called for the expansion of nationwide supports for survivors of female genital mutilation (FGM).
- During the last UPR process in 2021, Ireland received five recommendations on abortion (Switzerland, Netherlands, Iceland, Denmark and Austria), a recommendation from Canada to eliminate barriers to accessing sexual and reproductive health services and a recommendation on FGM from Burkina Faso.
About the Irish Family Planning Association (IFPA)
The IFPA is a leading not-for-profit provider of sexual and reproductive healthcare in Ireland, offering a comprehensive range of services including abortion care, contraception and specialist sexual and reproductive health counselling. It also operates Ireland’s only dedicated treatment service for survivors of female genital mutilation (FGM).
The IFPA advocates for reproductive autonomy and the progressive realisation of the right to the highest attainable standard of sexual and reproductive health, including the principles of availability, accessibility, acceptability and quality (AAAQ). It is a member association of the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) and Ireland’s collaborating partner of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the UN agency for sexual and reproductive health.