Medical professionals in Northern Ireland will not be prosecuted for referring women to NHS hospitals and clinics in the rest of the UK for abortions, Amnesty International has been told.

The Director of Public Prosecutions, Barra McGrory QC, told the human rights group that he could see no risk of criminal prosecution for NHS employees in such circumstances.

The question is central to the effectiveness of the new arrangements being put in place by the UK government to provide free abortion healthcare to women from Northern Ireland in England and Wales.

Grainne Teggart, Amnesty International’s Northern Ireland campaigns manager, said: “The threat of prosecution has long loomed over medical professionals in Northern Ireland, who have previously felt unable to refer women to other parts of the UK for abortion services for fear of criminal prosecution. This has acted as a significant barrier for women seeking to access abortion.

“The Public Prosecution Service has now stated clearly they can see no risk of criminal prosecution in these circumstances. This is hugely important and should relieve the profession of this chilling threat. This is a significant breakthrough in the fight for abortion rights here.”

The Public Prosecution Service also told Amnesty there is no offence in Northern Ireland law of “advocating and promoting abortion”, as suggested in Department of Health guidance published in 2016.

Ms Teggart added: “We now have clarification that no offence exists around ‘advocating or promoting abortion’ – this is a matter of DHSS policy and raises the question why it is in the guidance in the first place.

“We call on the Department of Health to urgently revise their guidance and work closely with the UK Equalities Office to ensure a clear pathway for women accessing abortion in the rest of the UK.”

Breedagh Hughes, NI Director of Royal College of Midwives, added: “Midwives have been operating in a climate of fear of prosecution since 2013. Women in Northern Ireland have not been getting the care and referrals to services in the UK that they really need because of this threat which we now know does not exist.

“Healthcare professionals will now be able to refer women to the rest of the UK for abortion services, confident that they will not face prosecution. This is a welcome development and will enable us to look after women who seek or need abortion services.”