Secretary of State Karen Bradley insisted that people in Northern Ireland do not want MPs making decisions on whether to change abortion laws in Northern Ireland. 

“It’s another example of why the (Stormont) executive needs to be reformed, so those politicians representing the people Northern Ireland, understanding their views on this very, very sensitive issue can make sure the law is right for them,” Mrs Bradley told the Press Association.

The Government is facing mounting pressure to reform Northern Ireland's abortion laws following a yes vote in the Republic of Ireland's abortion referendum in May. 

"My conversations with people here is that they want their voice to be heard and they want their politicians, who they elected, to represent them," Bradley said.

In an interview with PA in Belfast earlier this month, Mrs Bradley said, “My conversations with people here is that they want their voice to be heard and they want their politicians, who they elected, to represent them and to develop laws around abortion that are right for Northern Ireland.

“If I have heard one view I’ve heard 100 different views about what that law should look like. But there is one thing that’s absolutely certain – politicians at Westminster are not the people qualified to determine what the law looks like.

“It absolutely should be done in Stormont,” Mrs Bradley concluded.