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A bid to end Northern Ireland's Victorian-era abortion ban has cleared its first hurdle after a landmark vote in the UK House of Commons.

MPs voted 208-123 to wave through the Abortion Bill after 15 Tories - including Minister for Women Victoria Atkins - backed it.

It could be a major step forward for women's abortion rights in Northern Ireland and is a headache for Theresa May , who has refused to change the law.

But the Bill is still only at its very early stages, is likely to face heavy opposition and only has a very, very slim chance of becoming law.

Unlike the rest of the UK Northern Ireland has a ban on abortions in almost all cases, even rape or incest.

Labour MP Diana Johnson today launched her bid to change that with a powerful speech on her backbench Bill.

Scroll down for the full list of how MPs voted

(Image: Jack Taylor)

(Image: PA)

She told MPs how a Northern Irish woman spent Christmas Day in casualty with her two children after her husband beat her to a pulp and repeatedly raped her.

Speaking the woman's words, she declared: "I could not continue with the pregnancy knowing my husband would carry out his threats to kill me if he found out.

"I went to my GP who told me abortion was illegal in Northern Ireland and refused to help."

Another mother faces a life sentence for helping her 15-year-old daughter get abortion tablets online, Ms Johnson said, after her abusive partner "threatened to kick the baby out and stab it if it was born".

In two more cases women were forced to carry foetuses who would not survive due to health conditions.

They had to give birth to a stillborn daughter and a baby too weak to survive.

Ms Johnson said: "Every minute of every day you have to live with the knowledge the child inside you is going to die."

The current law has led thousands of women to travel to Britain for the procedure in what a QC has branded "physical and mental torture".

It also leaves Northern Ireland with stricter laws than in the Republic of Ireland after a referendum relaxed the law earlier this year.

Yet Tory ministers have repeatedly refused to intervene from London because they say any decision should be made by the Northern Ireland Assembly - despite power-sharing having broken down.

Tory MP Fiona Bruce urged MPs to vote against the motion - warning it would "set a dangerous constitutional precedent of interference".

(Image: PA)

"It's not only unconstitutional, it's untimely," she said.

"At such a sensitive time in relations between the Westminster Government and the Northern Ireland administration, it would completely undermine the substance and spirit of the Good Friday Agreement."

But 15 Tory MPs backed the Bill's First Reading alongside 179 Labour MPs, five Lib Dems, four Plaid Cymru MPs, three Independents, one Green Party MP and one SNP MP.

A total of 108 Conservative MPs, seven Labour, six DUP , one SNP and one Liberal Democrat MP voted against.

It is unusual to have a vote on a Bill's First Reading - usually they sail through without opposition.

The Bill will now go forward for its Second Reading on November 23 where it will be reined in by strict time limits and could be "filibustered".

Even if it passes that stage it will have to go through a lengthy committee stage and the House of Lords before becoming law.

Northern Ireland is still ruled by an 1861 Act threatening anyone performing abortions with life imprisonment, which was ruled as a breach of human rights by the Supreme Court this summer.

The ruling followed a landslide referendum vote to legalise abortion in the Republic of Ireland, which Ms Johnson said means now is the right time to act.

Ms Johnson wants to remove the section of the 1861 Act that criminalises abortion and bring in her own, modernised Act in England and Wales, hoping Northern Ireland will consider following suit.

But the Right to Life anti-abortion group claimed the proposals were "extreme" and went beyond just legalising abortion in Northern Ireland.

Spokeswoman Clare McCarthy said: "If these proposals were to become law, it would bring about one of the world’s most extreme abortion laws.

"This Bill would have the effect of making the Abortion Act 1967, along with most of the legal safeguards it provides, void through to at least 24-weeks, i.e over five months, gestation."

How MPs voted on the First Reading of the Abortion Bill

The description of the Bill

That leave be given to bring in a Bill to amend the law relating to abortion in England and Wales, and Northern Ireland; to remove criminal liability in respect of abortion performed with the consent of the pregnant woman up to the twenty-fourth week of pregnancy; to repeal sections 59 and 60 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861; to create offences of termination of a pregnancy after its twenty-fourth week and non-consensual termination of a pregnancy; to amend the law relating to conscientious objection to participation in abortion treatment; and for connected purposes.

What if my MP isn't on the list?

Only about half of MPs in Parliament took part in the vote, which was for many a deeply personal choice.

That means only about half are on the list below. If your MP is not listed that means they did not take part.

They may have abstained for a moral reason, or because they didn't want to be pinned down to one position, or they may have been absent. There are many reasons why MPs can abstain.

MPs who voted FOR the Bill

Lyn Brown (Labour - West Ham) - TELLER

Dr Roberta Blackman-Woods (Labour - City of Durham) - TELLER

Ms Diane Abbott (Labour - Hackney North and Stoke Newington)

Debbie Abrahams (Labour - Oldham East and Saddleworth)

Rushanara Ali (Labour - Bethnal Green and Bow)

Heidi Allen (Conservative - South Cambridgeshire)

Mike Amesbury (Labour - Weaver Vale)

Tonia Antoniazzi (Labour - Gower)

Jonathan Ashworth (Labour (Co-op) - Leicester South)

Victoria Atkins (Conservative - Louth and Horncastle)

Mr Adrian Bailey (Labour (Co-op) - West Bromwich West)

Hannah Bardell (Scottish National Party - Livingston)

Sir Kevin Barron (Labour - Rother Valley)

Hilary Benn (Labour - Leeds Central)

Luciana Berger (Labour (Co-op) - Liverpool, Wavertree)

Mr Clive Betts (Labour - Sheffield South East)

Paul Blomfield (Labour - Sheffield Central)

Crispin Blunt (Conservative - Reigate)

Tracy Brabin (Labour (Co-op) - Batley and Spen)

Mr Ben Bradshaw (Labour - Exeter)

Tom Brake (Liberal Democrat - Carshalton and Wallington)

Kevin Brennan (Labour - Cardiff West)

Mr Nicholas Brown (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East)

Chris Bryant (Labour - Rhondda)

Ms Karen Buck (Labour - Westminster North)

Richard Burden (Labour - Birmingham, Northfield)

Richard Burgon (Labour - Leeds East)

Dawn Butler (Labour - Brent Central)

Liam Byrne (Labour - Birmingham, Hodge Hill)

Sir Vince Cable (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)

Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)

Mr Alan Campbell (Labour - Tynemouth)

Mr Ronnie Campbell (Labour - Blyth Valley)

Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool, Walton)

Sarah Champion (Labour - Rotherham)

Jenny Chapman (Labour - Darlington)

Bambos Charalambous (Labour - Enfield, Southgate)

Ann Coffey (Labour - Stockport)

Julie Cooper (Labour - Burnley)

Yvette Cooper (Labour - Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford)

Jeremy Corbyn (Labour - Islington North)

Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)

Mary Creagh (Labour - Wakefield)

Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)

Tracey Crouch (Conservative - Chatham and Aylesford)

John Cryer (Labour - Leyton and Wanstead)

Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)

Mr Jim Cunningham (Labour - Coventry South)

Janet Daby (Labour - Lewisham East)

Nic Dakin (Labour - Scunthorpe)

Sir Edward Davey (Liberal Democrat - Kingston and Surbiton)

Wayne David (Labour - Caerphilly)

Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)

Gloria De Piero (Labour - Ashfield)

Thangam Debbonaire (Labour - Bristol West)

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)

Caroline Dinenage (Conservative - Gosport)

Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)

Peter Dowd (Labour - Bootle)

Jack Dromey (Labour - Birmingham, Erdington)

James Duddridge (Conservative - Rochford and Southend East)

Rosie Duffield (Labour - Canterbury)

Maria Eagle (Labour - Garston and Halewood)

Ms Angela Eagle (Labour - Wallasey)

Jonathan Edwards (Plaid Cymru - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)

Clive Efford (Labour - Eltham)

Julie Elliott (Labour - Sunderland Central)

Dame Louise Ellman (Labour (Co-op) - Liverpool, Riverside)

Chris Elmore (Labour - Ogmore)

Bill Esterson (Labour - Sefton Central)

Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Islwyn)

Paul Farrelly (Labour - Newcastle-under-Lyme)

Jim Fitzpatrick (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)

Colleen Fletcher (Labour - Coventry North East)

Caroline Flint (Labour - Don Valley)

Yvonne Fovargue (Labour - Makerfield)

Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham, Deptford)

James Frith (Labour - Bury North)

Barry Gardiner (Labour - Brent North)

Ruth George (Labour - High Peak)

Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham, Edgbaston)

Mr Roger Godsiff (Labour - Birmingham, Hall Green)

Kate Green (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)

Justine Greening (Conservative - Putney)

Lilian Greenwood (Labour - Nottingham South)

Margaret Greenwood (Labour - Wirral West)

Nia Griffith (Labour - Llanelli)

Louise Haigh (Labour - Sheffield, Heeley)

David Hanson (Labour - Delyn)

Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle)

Ms Harriet Harman (Labour - Camberwell and Peckham)

Carolyn Harris (Labour - Swansea East)

Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)

Sue Hayman (Labour - Workington)

Mike Hill (Labour - Hartlepool)

Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)

Dame Margaret Hodge (Labour - Barking)

Mrs Sharon Hodgson (Labour - Washington and Sunderland West)

Kelvin Hopkins (Independent - Luton North)

Dr Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)

Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)

Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North)

Joseph Johnson (Conservative - Orpington)

Darren Jones (Labour - Bristol North West)

Gerald Jones (Labour - Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney)

Graham P Jones (Labour - Hyndburn)

Mr Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)

Barbara Keeley (Labour - Worsley and Eccles South)

Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)

Ged Killen (Labour (Co-op) - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)

Stephen Kinnock (Labour - Aberavon)

Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)

Lesley Laird (Labour - Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath)

Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion)

Mr David Lammy (Labour - Tottenham)

Karen Lee (Labour - Lincoln)

Mr Chris Leslie (Labour (Co-op) - Nottingham East)

Tony Lloyd (Labour - Rochdale)

Tim Loughton (Conservative - East Worthing and Shoreham)

Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)

Justin Madders (Labour - Ellesmere Port and Neston)

Mr Khalid Mahmood (Labour - Birmingham, Perry Barr)

Seema Malhotra (Labour (Co-op) - Feltham and Heston)

Sandy Martin (Labour - Ipswich)

Christian Matheson (Labour - City of Chester)

Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)

Mr Pat McFadden (Labour - Wolverhampton South East)

Alison McGovern (Labour - Wirral South)

Liz McInnes (Labour - Heywood and Middleton)

Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West and Royton)

Anna McMorrin (Labour - Cardiff North)

Ian Mearns (Labour - Gateshead)

Huw Merriman (Conservative - Bexhill and Battle)

Edward Miliband (Labour - Doncaster North)

Mrs Madeleine Moon (Labour - Bridgend)

Penny Mordaunt (Conservative - Portsmouth North)

Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)

Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)

Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)

Ian Murray (Labour - Edinburgh South)

Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)

Alex Norris (Labour (Co-op) - Nottingham North)

Jared O'Mara (Independent - Sheffield, Hallam)

Melanie Onn (Labour - Great Grimsby)

Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)

Kate Osamor (Labour (Co-op) - Edmonton)

Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)

Teresa Pearce (Labour - Erith and Thamesmead)

Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)

Toby Perkins (Labour - Chesterfield)

Jess Phillips (Labour - Birmingham, Yardley)

Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)

Jo Platt (Labour (Co-op) - Leigh)

Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)

Dr Dan Poulter (Conservative - Central Suffolk and North Ipswich)

Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Faisal Rashid (Labour - Warrington South)

Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)

Mr Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Croydon North)

Christina Rees (Labour (Co-op) - Neath)

Ellie Reeves (Labour - Lewisham West and Penge)

Emma Reynolds (Labour - Wolverhampton North East)

Matt Rodda (Labour - Reading East)

Danielle Rowley (Labour - Midlothian)

Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour (Co-op) - Brighton, Kemptown)

Joan Ryan (Labour - Enfield North)

Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)

Naz Shah (Labour - Bradford West)

Mr Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)

Paula Sherriff (Labour - Dewsbury)

Mr Gavin Shuker (Labour (Co-op) - Luton South)

Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)

Chris Skidmore (Conservative - Kingswood)

Mr Dennis Skinner (Labour - Bolsover)

Andy Slaughter (Labour - Hammersmith)

Ruth Smeeth (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent North)

Eleanor Smith (Labour - Wolverhampton South West)

Jeff Smith (Labour - Manchester, Withington)

Laura Smith (Labour - Crewe and Nantwich)

Nick Smith (Labour - Blaenau Gwent)

Owen Smith (Labour - Pontypridd)

Karin Smyth (Labour - Bristol South)

Gareth Snell (Labour (Co-op) - Stoke-on-Trent Central)

Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)

Anna Soubry (Conservative - Broxtowe)

Keir Starmer (Labour - Holborn and St Pancras)

Jo Stevens (Labour - Cardiff Central)

Wes Streeting (Labour - Ilford North)

Graham Stringer (Labour - Blackley and Broughton)

Mr Paul Sweeney (Labour (Co-op) - Glasgow North East)

Mark Tami (Labour - Alyn and Deeside)

Emily Thornberry (Labour - Islington South and Finsbury)

Anna Turley (Labour (Co-op) - Redcar)

Karl Turner (Labour - Kingston upon Hull East)

Stephen Twigg (Labour (Co-op) - Liverpool, West Derby)

Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon)

Chuka Umunna (Labour - Streatham)

Valerie Vaz (Labour - Walsall South)

Thelma Walker (Labour - Colne Valley)

Tom Watson (Labour - West Bromwich East)

Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green)

Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)

Dr Alan Whitehead (Labour - Southampton, Test)

Martin Whitfield (Labour - East Lothian)

Dr Paul Williams (Labour - Stockton South)

Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)

Phil Wilson (Labour - Sedgefield)

Dr Sarah Wollaston (Conservative - Totnes)

John Woodcock (Independent - Barrow and Furness)

Daniel Zeichner (Labour - Cambridge)

MPs who voted AGAINST the Bill

Emma Little Pengelly (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast South) - TELLER

Chris Green (Conservative - Bolton West) - TELLER

Peter Aldous (Conservative - Waveney)

Sir David Amess (Conservative - Southend West)

Mr Richard Bacon (Conservative - South Norfolk)

Mr Steve Baker (Conservative - Wycombe)

Sir Henry Bellingham (Conservative - North West Norfolk)

Bob Blackman (Conservative - Harrow East)

Mr Peter Bone (Conservative - Wellingborough)

Sir Graham Brady (Conservative - Altrincham and Sale West)

Andrew Bridgen (Conservative - North West Leicestershire)

Steve Brine (Conservative - Winchester)

Fiona Bruce (Conservative - Congleton)

Mr Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)

James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)

Alex Chalk (Conservative - Cheltenham)

Rehman Chishti (Conservative - Gillingham and Rainham)

Sir Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)

Mr Simon Clarke (Conservative - Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland)

Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown (Conservative - The Cotswolds)

Dr Thérèse Coffey (Conservative - Suffolk Coastal)

Alberto Costa (Conservative - South Leicestershire)

Mr Geoffrey Cox (Conservative - Torridge and West Devon)

Stephen Crabb (Conservative - Preseli Pembrokeshire)

David T. C. Davies (Conservative - Monmouth)

Glyn Davies (Conservative - Montgomeryshire)

Philip Davies (Conservative - Shipley)

Leo Docherty (Conservative - Aldershot)

Sir Jeffrey M. Donaldson (Democratic Unionist Party - Lagan Valley)

Michelle Donelan (Conservative - Chippenham)

Steve Double (Conservative - St Austell and Newquay)

Richard Drax (Conservative - South Dorset)

Mr Iain Duncan Smith (Conservative - Chingford and Woodford Green)

Michael Ellis (Conservative - Northampton North)

Sir Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)

Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)

Kevin Foster (Conservative - Torbay)

Mr Mark Francois (Conservative - Rayleigh and Wickford)

Mr Marcus Fysh (Conservative - Yeovil)

Sir Roger Gale (Conservative - North Thanet)

Dame Cheryl Gillan (Conservative - Chesham and Amersham)

John Glen (Conservative - Salisbury)

Mary Glindon (Labour - North Tyneside)

Mr Robert Goodwill (Conservative - Scarborough and Whitby)

Bill Grant (Conservative - Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock)

James Gray (Conservative - North Wiltshire)

Chris Grayling (Conservative - Epsom and Ewell)

Damian Green (Conservative - Ashford)

John Grogan (Labour - Keighley)

Kirstene Hair (Conservative - Angus)

Greg Hands (Conservative - Chelsea and Fulham)

Mr John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)

Sir Oliver Heald (Conservative - North East Hertfordshire)

Simon Hoare (Conservative - North Dorset)

Kevin Hollinrake (Conservative - Thirsk and Malton)

Mr Philip Hollobone (Conservative - Kettering)

Eddie Hughes (Conservative - Walsall North)

Mr Ranil Jayawardena (Conservative - North East Hampshire)

Andrea Jenkyns (Conservative - Morley and Outwood)

Dr Caroline Johnson (Conservative - Sleaford and North Hykeham)

Helen Jones (Labour - Warrington North)

Mr David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)

Mr Marcus Jones (Conservative - Nuneaton)

Mike Kane (Labour - Wythenshawe and Sale East)

Daniel Kawczynski (Conservative - Shrewsbury and Atcham)

Seema Kennedy (Conservative - South Ribble)

Stephen Kerr (Conservative - Stirling)

Julian Knight (Conservative - Solihull)

John Lamont (Conservative - Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk)

Andrea Leadsom (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)

Dr Phillip Lee (Conservative - Bracknell)

Jeremy Lefroy (Conservative - Stafford)

Sir Edward Leigh (Conservative - Gainsborough)

Sir Oliver Letwin (Conservative - West Dorset)

Andrew Lewer (Conservative - Northampton South)

Angus Brendan MacNeil (Scottish National Party - Na h-Eileanan an Iar)

Mrs Anne Main (Conservative - St Albans)

Scott Mann (Conservative - North Cornwall)

Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)

Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)

Sir Patrick McLoughlin (Conservative - Derbyshire Dales)

Nigel Mills (Conservative - Amber Valley)

Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)

Dr Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)

Robert Neill (Conservative - Bromley and Chislehurst)

Dr Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)

Fiona Onasanya (Labour - Peterborough)

Neil Parish (Conservative - Tiverton and Honiton)

Mark Pawsey (Conservative - Rugby)

Teresa Pearce (Labour - Erith and Thamesmead)

Sir Mike Penning (Conservative - Hemel Hempstead)

Andrew Percy (Conservative - Brigg and Goole)

Chris Philp (Conservative - Croydon South)

Victoria Prentis (Conservative - Banbury)

Tom Pursglove (Conservative - Corby)

John Redwood (Conservative - Wokingham)

Mr Jacob Rees-Mogg (Conservative - North East Somerset)

Mr Laurence Robertson (Conservative - Tewkesbury)

Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)

Mary Robinson (Conservative - Cheadle)

David Rutley (Conservative - Macclesfield)

Andrew Selous (Conservative - South West Bedfordshire)

Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)

David Simpson (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)

Henry Smith (Conservative - Crawley)

Andrew Stephenson (Conservative - Pendle)

John Stevenson (Conservative - Carlisle)

Bob Stewart (Conservative - Beckenham)

Rory Stewart (Conservative - Penrith and The Border)

Mr Gary Streeter (Conservative - South West Devon)

Sir Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)

Sir Hugo Swire (Conservative - East Devon)

Sir Robert Syms (Conservative - Poole)

Derek Thomas (Conservative - St Ives)

Ross Thomson (Conservative - Aberdeen South)

Maggie Throup (Conservative - Erewash)

Michael Tomlinson (Conservative - Mid Dorset and North Poole)

Martin Vickers (Conservative - Cleethorpes)

Mr Charles Walker (Conservative - Broxbourne)

David Warburton (Conservative - Somerton and Frome)

Mrs Heather Wheeler (Conservative - South Derbyshire)

Craig Whittaker (Conservative - Calder Valley)

Bill Wiggin (Conservative - North Herefordshire)

Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)

Mr William Wragg (Conservative - Hazel Grove)