Mps Vote To Decriminalise Abortion For Women In England And Wales

MPs person voted to alteration abortion authorities to extremity women successful England and Wales being prosecuted for ending their pregnancy.

The Labour MP for Gower, Tonia Antoniazzi, led nan telephone to decriminalise nan 1% of abortions that hap aft 24 weeks, saying these were "desperate women" who request "compassion not criminalisation".

As an rumor of conscience, MPs were allowed to ballot according to their individual beliefs, and backed nan scheme by a large mostly of 242 votes.

The existent rule successful England and Wales states that abortion is forbidden but allowed up to nan first 24 weeks of gestation and beyond that successful definite circumstances specified arsenic if nan woman's life is successful danger.

Antoniazzi's amendment to nan Crime and Policing Bill will region nan threat of investigation, arrest, prosecution, aliases imprisonment for precocious word abortion.

Setting retired her arguments, she flagged that astir 99% of abortions hap earlier a gestation reaches 20 weeks, leaving conscionable 1% of women "in hopeless circumstances".

Antoniazzi highlighted a bid of cases wherever women had been arrested for forbidden abortion offences and urged MPs to support her amendment to recognise "these women request attraction and support, and not criminalisation".

"Each 1 of these cases is simply a travesty, enabled by our outdated abortion law," she said.

"Originally passed by an all-male parliament elected by men alone, this Victorian rule is progressively utilized against susceptible women and girls."

Stella Creasy asked why MPs would want to clasp outdated laws "in immoderate style aliases form, alternatively than learning from what is champion believe astir nan world for each of our constituents".

The Labour MP for Walthamstow put guardant a 2nd amendment urging MPs to spell further, ditch immoderate abortion-related clauses nan 1861 Act, and enshrine abortion entree arsenic a quality right.

This was publically backed by 108 MPs earlier nan statement - but abortion providers, including nan British Pregnancy Advisory Service, said nan amendment was not nan correct measurement to execute "generational change", and it did not spell to a vote.

Conservative protector wellness curate Dr Caroline Johnson put guardant a 3rd amendment, aimed astatine stopping pills by station abortions by requiring a pregnant female to person an in-person consultation earlier being prescribed medicine to terminate her pregnancy.

The Johnson amendment fell, pinch 379 MPs voting against and 117 voting for.

Earlier, nan Antoniazzi amendment had won support from 379 MPs, pinch 137 against.