Britain’s House of Lords has approved abortion up to birth as part of an amendment to a Crime and Policing bill.
“As my noble friend Lord Hailsham said, this clause passed the Commons without any evidence, scrutiny, public consultation or impact assessment, although it is momentous,” said Baroness Monckton. “It is a radical proposal with implications for the mental and physical health of the woman and lethal consequences for the viable unborn child. Clause 208 would allow mothers to self-administer the abortion of their unborn child for any reason, at any stage of pregnancy right up to full term. This is not just its consequential effect; it is its intended effect.”
The clause states, “For the purposes of the law related to abortion … no offence is committed by a woman acting in relation to her own pregnancy.”
Right to Life UK said the decision means “there will be no legal deterrent against a woman inducing her own abortion right up to full-term for any reason, including sex-selective abortions.” The group added, “There has been no public clamour for this law change, nor did anyone vote for it – it was not in the Government’s manifesto. This is the greatest change to abortion law since 1967, yet there has been no consultation, no national debate and no impact assessment.”
According to a poll from Savanta ComRes, only 1% of women support up-to-birth abortions.
Under an amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill, no prosecutions would be had for women who terminate pregnancies in all circumstances. Under current British law, abortion is decriminalized for the first 24 weeks of pregnancy.
