Carla Lockhart MP has spoken out against plans to light up Belfast City Hall in support of abortion on Easter Sunday.
She has taken her opposition to Westminster by tabling an early day motion calling for the proposal to be dropped.
The motion challenges the council’s decision to illuminate the building on 28 March 2027 to mark the Global Day of Action to De-stigmatise Abortion.
It argues that civic buildings should "serve the whole community" and "respect the deeply held convictions of those they represent".
The motion objects to using such buildings to promote abortion "on any date" but "deplores the particular insensitivity of choosing Easter Sunday, when Christians celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ".
It also backs an attempt led by Alderman Dean McCullough to have the decision reversed through Belfast council’s “call-in” procedure, which allows councillors to request a review into how a decision was reached or whether it could disproportionately affect a particular section of the community.
Writing on Facebook, Lockhart, who is a Christian, called the plans "grotesquely offensive".
"Abortion is not healthcare and in no way should it be celebrated," she said.
"It couldn’t be more inappropriate for Belfast City Council to light up City Hall on Easter Sunday.
"At a time when the death of Christ is marked by Christians across the globe, this is abhorrent."
The Upper Bann MP also argued that public resources should be directed towards protecting life and providing support.
"The first role of the Health Service is to preserve life, not end it. There needs to be more investment in education and support services, and less in assisting people to harm the most vulnerable in society," she continued.
"In Northern Ireland, rare bird eggs have more protection than the unborn child. The unborn child is a living human being, with its own DNA, and should be cherished and cared for."
Precious Life director Bernadette Smyth described the timing of the illuminations as “deeply offensive to Christians”. She argued that City Hall should serve all Belfast residents and should not be used to endorse a particular position on such a divisive issue.
Right To Life UK spokeswoman Catherine Robinson said the plans were "very disappointing".
“It is especially galling that they have decided to celebrate abortion on Easter Sunday, the holiest day in the Christian calendar," she said.
"Abortion is contrary to many individuals’ Christian beliefs, and it is hard to see how this is not a deliberate provocation”.
“The planned illumination of the landmark should not go ahead."
The row comes on the back of unsuccessful attempts to illuminate City Hall for International Safe Abortion Day on 28 September. The display was cancelled after the DUP invoked the call-in process to challenge the decision.
Councillor Dean McCullough said that while the initial proposals were insensitive, “to then request another on what is arguably the holiest week in the Christian calendar makes it even more insensitive."
“For many, turning City Hall into effectively an abortion billboard was simply a step too far," he added.
