The Sandbæk Report was a report authored by Ulla Sandbæk

Ulla Sandbæk

Ulla Margrethe Sandbæk is a former Danish Member of the European Parliament for the June Movement.She served from 1994 to 2004. She was responsible for the Sandbæk report that resulted in a European Union regulation increasing funding for the United Nations Population Fund, which controversially...

 that after being passed by the European Parliament is now a European Union regulation

European Union regulation

A regulation is a legislative act of the European Union that becomes immediately enforceable as law in all member states simultaneously. Regulations can be distinguished from directives which, at least in principle, need to be transposed into national law...

 titled Aid for Policies and Actions on Reproductive and Sexual Health and Rights in Developing Countries.

Pro-life

Pro-life

Opposition to the legalization of abortion is centered around the pro-life, or anti-abortion, movement, a social and political movement opposing elective abortion on moral grounds and supporting its legal prohibition or restriction...

 groups and the Catholic Church claim that the report compels all European Union

European Union

The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...

 member states to fund overseas abortion

Abortion

Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...

 services through their foreign aid budgets. They claim that the language of the report by talking of "universal access to a comprehensive range of safe and reliable reproductive and sexual health care and services" includes abortion under the World Health Organisation definition, and that this was admitted by Ulla Sandbæk in a radio interview.

An amendment preventing the use of European Union aid to finance abortions was defeated. The increase in funding of 150% was contrasted to a 2.3% overall increase in the aid budget.

This was seen by American Catholic commentatiors to contrast with the policy of the United States

Mexico City Policy

The Mexico City Policy, also known by critics as the Mexico City Gag Rule and the Global Gag Rule, was an intermittent United States government policy that required all non-governmental organizations that receive federal funding to refrain from performing or promoting abortion services, as a...

 which prohibited funding of abortion through foreign aid, particularly reversing the de-funding of the United Nations Population Fund

United Nations Population Fund

The United Nations Population Fund is a UN organization. The work of the UNFPA involves promotion of the right of every woman, man and child to enjoy a life of health and equal opportunity. This is done through major national and demographic surveys and with population censuses...

. The European commissioner Poul Nielson

Poul Nielson

Poul Nielson is a Danish politician, member of the Social Democrats. He was Energy Minister in the Cabinet of Anker Jørgensen IV and V from 26 October 1979 to 10 September 1982, and Minister for Development Cooperation in the Cabinet of Poul Nyrup Rasmussen II, III, and IV from 27 September 1994...

said that the European Union wished to "fill the decency gap" left by the Mexican City policy.