Displaying items by tag: abortion

Doctors in the British Medical Association (BMA) will vote on decriminalisation of abortion at its annual conference (24 to 29 June). The British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) and the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) are campaigning hard for a change in the law, and senior figures in the BMA are reported to favour this. However, there is concern that pro-life arguments have not been fairly represented in the lead-up to the vote. Delegates have been given a ‘neutral’ 52-page discussion paper, written by several pro-abortion doctors, which neglects to mention the increasing survival rate of premature babies. The latest official figures show that 190,406 women had abortions in 2016: alarmingly, these included more than 1,500 girls under the age of consent. Also, more babies with Down’s syndrome were aborted than in 2015 (such abortions have increased by 46 per cent since 2010). This debate comes as research shows that many are uneasy about the current law and favour reducing the period during which abortion is legal. See

Figures about public attitudes to abortion, particularly women’s attitudes, suggest a lot of unease with the current abortion law. Some suggest that this unease is to do with advances in prenatal screening. It is hard to compare a six-month cut-off limit for abortions with ubiquitous images of foetuses at twelve weeks looking embarrassingly, palpably, human. They may not be capable of surviving outside the womb - but they’re human all right. On the most important issue, the period during which abortion is legal, a large majority of women (7 out of 10) are in favour of reducing the time-limit, with nearly six in ten in favour of a limit of 16 weeks or fewer. There is also a large majority wanting parents to be informed when their underage daughter has an abortion, and a very large majority in favour of a ban on sex-selective abortions.

Last Monday In Rome, thousands of Italians marched against abortion and euthanasia at their annual March for Life. Participants included Cardinal Raymond Burke, Bishop Athanasius Schneider of Kazakhstan, and Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, former Apostolic Nuncio to the USA. The march is ‘taking on a life of its own,’ said a commentator. There were various groups of priests, Franciscan friars, youth groups, families, a group of bagpipers from Tradition, Family, Property, the Italian branch of Rachel's Vineyard, and many other Christian organisations. The march ended with a rally at which abortion survivor Gianna Jessen urged pro-lifers to be ‘unashamed of Jesus’.

Across the UK the Christian pro-life campaign, 40 Days for Life, is gaining momentum showing communities the consequences of abortion. Meanwhile Parliament is calling for the decriminalisation of abortion, without specifying any restrictions - allowing abortion up to birth, on demand, for any reason, without two doctors’ signatures. This bill should have its second reading on Friday, but the recent terrorist event, and parliamentary overload, may change this. Recently Prayer Alert readers were invited to pray about this Bill when it entered as a 10-minute rule abortion bill at its first hearing. Tragically it slipped through because it was timed to happen after the Brexit vote, when many MPs had left the house. If this bill goes through it could be passed into law. Few Bills introduced via the 10-minute rule become law, (Abortion Act 1967 was an exception). If enough people email their MPs and Theresa May (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) objecting to this bill, it will not progress beyond its second reading.

A bill on abortion rules will be brought before Parliament on Monday under the ten-minute rule. This bill calls for the decriminalisation of abortion, without specifying any restrictions - allowing abortion up to birth, on demand, for any reason. Conservative MP Maria Caulfied commented, ‘We are surprised and deeply concerned that such a radical proposal is being brought forward. Already within our current legal framework we have seen doctors pre-signing forms, gender-selective abortions being offered, live babies being left to die following abortions that have gone wrong and children with minor disabilities, such as cleft palates, aborted.’ Also please pray for Roger Kiska, who in a historic case on Tuesday will present oral arguments before the EU Court of Justice on behalf of the 1.9 million Europeans who signed the initiative to protect the unborn child.

Queenslanders will be looking to their parliament to reject a radical abortion bill after it failed to garner the support of a parliamentary committee charged with investigating its merits, according to Australian Christian Lobby Queensland director Wendy Francis. She called on both major parties to stick by their election commitment not to change current abortion laws, in the face of growing community opposition to the proposed bill. Pray for this law to be rejected by all Parliamentarians. Meanwhile, recently in Washington tens of thousands of anti-abortion activists 'marched for life', spurred on by Donald Trump who has vowed to end taxpayer-funded abortion. Pray for babies to be protected when they are most vulnerable, in the womb, and for governments to give dignity and value to unborn children. A huge part of the pro-life movement puts these values into action See: