Public health research, data analysis, and commentary on the global provision of sexual and reproductive health and rights; telemedicine and self-managed medical abortion; ethics, policy and payment.
On 09 May 2024, The Telegraph published an article responding to Ansell’s NC15, with the following headline: “Reducing abortion time limits would be ‘catastrophic’ for women.” [1] The article is misleading, or perhaps a better description would be that it is incorrect. The reporter, Donnelly, alleges that the Criminal Justice Bill amendment NC15, tabled by... Continue Reading →
Just before the Easter recess, Stella Creasy MP tabled a new abortion decriminalisation amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill, NC40. This was not available to the public until Friday evening, 12 April,[1] but that did not stop Creasy stirring up noisy discussions on social media by writing about parts of it in an opinion piece... Continue Reading →
In its campaign to decriminalise abortion, BPAS is using the stories of women who have been prosecuted or investigated to tug at our heartstrings and using emotive language to bring us and our MPs onside with their support for the Criminal Justice Bill abortion decriminalisation amendments tabled by Dame Diana Johnson (NC1) and Stella Creasy... Continue Reading →
The discovery of a baby’s body and the arrest of the parents led to a local authority placing the mother’s other children under interim care orders. Supporters of Dame Diana Johnson’s amendment for abortion decriminalisation, NC1, are using this as a campaigning headline: “Children of a British woman suspected of illegal abortion removed from her... Continue Reading →
Between 2012 and 2022, four women in England were convicted for committing an illegal abortion. In 2023, Carla Foster was jailed and then had her sentence halved and suspended. In December 2022, the case against a woman in Oxford was dropped and the case against Bethany Cox was dropped in January 2024. There are two... Continue Reading →
Those campaigning for Dame Diana Johnson’s amendment NC1, are cynically using the stories of six vulnerable women who have been brought to court, charged with having committed their own illegal abortion. The stories are tragic and we can all acknowledge the harm suffered by these women – the last thing they need now, is to... Continue Reading →
Dame Diana Johnson’s proposed amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill, NC1,[i] seeks to remove women from criminal prosecution if they are found to have self-managed their own abortion. In England and Wales, it is currently legal for a woman to do so through medical abortion until 9-weeks-6-days of pregnancy have elapsed. The equivalent limit is... Continue Reading →
Abortion campaigners have raised concern about the increasing number of women facing police investigation for illegal abortions. In March, during the Report Stage for the Criminal Justice Bill, it is expected that MPs will debate Dame Diana Johnson’s amendment, NC1, which calls for women to be removed from the criminal law related to abortion, thus... Continue Reading →
The Home Office data simply do not support Dr Lord’s claim of an ‘unprecedented’ increase in police investigations and prosecutions when women are suspected of performing their own illegal abortion.
In an interview with the BBC, Dr Jonathan Lord, medical director at MSI Reproductive Choices, raised concerns about an ‘unprecedented’ number of women being investigated by police on suspicion of illegally ending their pregnancy. He said that he knows of up to 60 criminal inquiries in England and Wales since 2018, compared with almost zero... Continue Reading →
Dr Lord, medical director at MSI Reproductive Choices, told the BBC that he knows of up to 60 women facing criminal inquiries for suspected abortion crime in England and Wales since 2018, compared with almost zero before. However, Home Office data show only a small uptick in 2022/23, compared to the eight years before that;... Continue Reading →
Dr Jonathan Lord, medical director at MSI Reproductive Choices, reports to The Guardian that he is aware of up to 30 “deeply traumatic” cases where women have been investigated by the police, after being accused of managing their own illegal abortion, with some suffering “life-changing harm”. For me, there is little doubt that these heart-rending... Continue Reading →
On Thursday 25 January, the Criminal Justice Bill Committee debated and then withdrew the proposed amendments NC1 and NC2, tabled by Dame Diana Johnson MP and Stella Creasy MP, respectively. Noting that abortion is a very sensitive and incredibly important issue, committee members agreed not to vote on the amendments but rather to leave the... Continue Reading →
I submitted written evidence to the Criminal Justice Bill Committee in response to the proposed (abortion decriminalisation) amendments NC1 and NC2 submitted by MPs Dame Diana Johnson and Stella Creasy, respectively. Executive Summary Self-management of a medical abortion at 12-weeks or greater gestational age is considered unsafe, and thus not to be recommended, by the... Continue Reading →
Kevin Duffy, former global director of clinics development at MSI, said the organisation was among those letting “women obtain pills-by-post” despite the dangers of an “incomplete abortion” requiring medical help. Writing on X, formerly Twitter, he said Dr Lord’s “perceived ‘problem’ of an increasing number of prosecutions is one of his own making and could... Continue Reading →
The Guardian, asking about what might be causing the recent increase in prosecution cases being brought against women suspected of an illegal abortion, says “it’s fair to say no one really knows for sure why…” and then in the very next part of the same sentence says, “the increased use of pills obtained to do... Continue Reading →
Dr Jonathan Lord, medical director for MSI Reproductive Choices, speaking on behalf of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, warns doctors that they must not report to the police any woman suspected of an illegal abortion. He said that new guidance will state that a healthcare worker must "justify" any disclosure of patient data... Continue Reading →
BPAS, Marie Stopes, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and a further twenty-four abortion-supporting organisations recently submitted their co-signed written evidence to the Criminal Justice Bill Committee. They did so in response to amendment NC1 tabled at the end of November by Labour MP, Dame Diana Johnson. You can read more about this and other amendments... Continue Reading →
In June 2023, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) published a position statement from a coalition of 33 organisations calling for reform of the abortion law in England and Wales. The two amendments to the Criminal Justice Bill (CJB), tabled on 28 November 2023 by Dame Diana Johnson and Stella Creasy MP, are... Continue Reading →
On 28 November 2023, Dame Diana Johnson and Stella Creasy MP both submitted proposed amendments to the Criminal Justice Bill.[i] Whilst they have taken two different approaches, both want changes made to ensure that no woman faces prosecution or jail time for ending her pregnancy, at any gestation. These amendments had been widely advertised by... Continue Reading →
Percuity 