STRASBOURG, France (AP):

Abortion should be decriminalised across Europe and women should be granted access to a safe interruption of their pregnancy, a report to be debated by European lawmakers says.

The report, likely to come under fire from Catholic countries where abortion rights are restricted, says a ban does not result in fewer abortions but can lead to clandestine medical interventions that can be dangerous and more traumatic.

But it also says that abortion should, under no circumstances, be regarded as a family planning method, and calls for sexual and reproductive health strategies.

The report is to be discussed tomorrow by the Council of Europe's parliamentary assembly, a group of 315 parliamentarians from 47 countries meeting four times a year to discuss human rights issues and social and political trends in Europe.

The issue pits those who classify abortion as murder against a pro-choice camp, which holds that the right to safe abortion should be a fundamental human right.

Major change

The report comes as a dispute, is raging in the Czech Republic on conditions for abortions, with a junior coalition party calling for the consent of the father for every abortion and the consent of the parents for every woman under 18, a major change in a country of 10 million where some 25,000 abortions were carried out last year.

Conservatives in Italy have tried to tighten the country's abortion laws. Former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, while saying individuals are free to choose, also said he wants the United Nations to approve a worldwide moratorium on abortions.

Abortion was also an election issue in Spain.

The Council of Europe report, drafted by Austrian Socialist lawmaker Gisela Wurm, wants women to have the ultimate decision whether or not to end their pregnancy.

Abortion on request is not available in Andorra, Ireland, Malta, Monaco or Poland, and rights are also restricted in Cyprus, Luxembourg and Portugal. In some less developed European countries, such as in the Caucasus, it is not easily accessible due to poor hygiene conditions and overcrowded medical facilities.