Legislation to tighten abortion laws in Poland has been pushed back. 

The bill, which seeks to protect unborn babies from disability-selective abortion, has been sent back to a parliamentary committee for further consideration, the Guardian reports.

Poland already has strict abortion laws but the legislation would seek to narrow the conditions for a termination even further by banning abortions on the grounds of serious foetal abnormalities. 

At present, they are permitted on these grounds, as are abortions after rape or incest, or if the mother's life is at risk.

President Andrzej Duda has previously spoken of his support for the bill, saying earlier this month that "killing disabled children is simply murder". 

He has vowed to sign the bill into law if it is passed by parliament. 

The legislation was brought before parliament as a result of a regulation that places a legal duty on lawmakers to consider any citizens' initiative that receives over 100,000 signatures. 

The citizens' initiative calling for tighter abortion regulations was backed by over 830,000 Polish residents.

Polling points to strong support for pro-life laws in Poland, with a CBOS poll finding that three quarters of Poles believe abortion is "always wrong and can never be justified", while only 7 per cent think there is "nothing wrong with it and [it] could always be justified".