Today, the RCOG welcomes an amendment laid to the Crime and Policing Bill, which is currently making its way through Parliament. The amendment, laid in the name of Tonia Antoniazzi MP, would remove women from the criminal law related to abortion in England and Wales and ensure that they are no longer subject to years-long investigation, criminal charges, and custodial sentences for ending their own pregnancy.
Dr Ranee Thakar, President of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists said,
“Abortion law in England and Wales is the oldest healthcare law in existence and means that a woman can be prosecuted for ending her own pregnancy.
“Abortion that happens outside of the current law generally involves very vulnerable women — including those facing domestic abuse, mental health challenges or barriers to accessing NHS care. Yet alarmingly, prosecutions of women have been increasing in recent years.
“Abortion is an essential form of healthcare and should be subject to regulatory and professional standards like other medical procedures, not criminal sanctions.
“Parliamentarians now have an unmissable opportunity to decriminalise abortion, to ensure women can access abortion safely, confidentially and free from the threat of investigation and prosecution.
“We urge MPs to support this amendment to ensure that women and girls in England and Wales will have the same protections as their counterparts in countries such as Northern Ireland, France, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.”
ENDS
· Read our joint position statement on abortion decriminalisation here.
· Find the amendment (NC1) here: https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/bills/cbill/59-01/0187/amend/crime_policing_rm_rep_0514.pdf