The European Parliament adopts draft resolutions on the citizens' initiative "My Voice, My Choice: for safe and accessible abortion", which aims to create a financial mechanism from the European Union budget. This will allow women to have an abortion in another Member State if the legislation in their country of origin does not allow or makes it very difficult for them to do so.
The resolution supports the call for the European Commission to present a concrete proposal for such a mechanism in the framework of public health policy and cross-border healthcare.
The initiative is based on the claim of its supporters that the different abortion legislation in the Member States creates inequality between women within the European Union.
They argue that financial assistance for procedures abroad could reduce illegal and health-risk procedures and ensure equal access to healthcare regardless of place of residence.
Interference with national competences
The adoption of the resolution was accompanied by considerable political and values controversy. MEPs from the conservative and right-wing factions point out that the regulation of abortion falls within the exclusive competence of the Member States under the Treaties and reflects their historical, cultural and ethical choices.
In their view, the funding of abortion from the European budget constitutes an indirect interference in national legal orders and an infringement of the principle of subsidiarity.
Slovak MEP Miriam Lexmann stressed her fundamental opposition to the European Union funding so-called abortion tourism. She also tabled an alternative resolution, which reminded the House that abortion issues do not fall within the EU's competences.
Lexmann has repeatedly pointed to the need to focus on supporting pregnant women, families and the fight against poverty, which she has identified as one of the main reasons why women are faced with difficult existential choices.
Pressure from civil society initiatives
The vote was preceded by intense campaigns on both sides of the argument. Supporters of the initiative pointed to the alleged need to respond to restrictions in countries such as Malta and Poland, which have stricter anti-abortion laws.
Opponents, on the other hand, have organised a number of professional and political events in the European Parliament calling for a strengthening of social and family policy rather than support for abortion.
The Polish Ordo Iuris Institute has also taken legal action against the decision.
Church organisations have also joined the debate. The Commission of the Bishops' Conferences of the European Union called on MEPs to vote responsibly and with respect for the existing division of competences.
It pointed out that, according to Catholic teaching, human life must be protected from conception and that other forms of support than facilitating abortion should be sought to address women's vulnerable situations. The Commission also warned against further ideological divisions in the European Union.
Next steps at European Commission level
The approved resolution represents the political position of the European Parliament and is not directly legally binding. However, it serves as an important political signal towards the European Commission, which is obliged under the rules of the citizens' initiative to deal formally with the proposal.
The Commission has until March 2026 to submit a formal response assessing the compatibility of the initiative with the EU Treaties, in particular the distribution of competences in the area of health policy, as well as its possible budgetary and legal implications.
The reply should also indicate whether it intends to make a concrete legislative or financial proposal or whether it will decide not to act and justify its position.