MPs vote to decriminalise abortion

[AirborneElephant]

AIBU to be thrilled! Sorry if there’s already a thread, couldn’t see one.

This is a welcome and timely move, I’m glad to see it passed.

I think being able to abort a late term pregnancy for any reason is pretty disgusting. I don’t see the difference between this and leaving a new born in a bin to die when they are some way past the point that they could survive on the outside alone (25 weeks +). I think the current law strikes a decent balance between recognising that end a life is a big deal but acknowledging there are some situations when necessary late term

I trust women, @ladykale. So few late term abortions are carried out, nobody is going to be doing it on a whim.

There's at least one thread.

Prosecuting women in extreme distress who are no threat to anyone and unlikely to do it again seems cruel and wasteful to me.

Note to many - decriminalisation is NOT legalisation. It doesn't create a right to later term abortions.

You do know that they haven’t changed the law right? They have decriminalised it, they haven’t legalised it.

Lots of misunderstanding around this, like there's going to be a rash of heavily pregnant women just killing babies willy nilly.

Rather, the women who have to go through the appaling experience of late term abortion due to risk of death, & so on, don't risk going to prison.

Zero evidence of wild increases in the countries that have the same 'limit'.

You really need to find out the facts here.

@AirborneElephant thanks for letting us know.

Good news.

Yes, all those women who now will get to 37 weeks and have an abortion now it's being decriminalised!

9:30am cup of tea
10:30am abortion
12:30 lunch with Brenda

I can see it now....

This is excellent news if you want to roll back abortion rights.

My prediction is that Reform will now use this as a campaign issue. Especially once there is a case where a baby has been aborted after 24 weeks and suffered significant pain.

There will be no more abortion once Reform gain power in 2029.

I hate to say it, but those who have pushed what was a settled issue into a culture war battle will only have themselves to blame.

Good news

All in all, it’s good news. No one will be ‘allowed’ to have a late term abortion short of very specific situations which are already covered in current law.

But women having a stillbirth or miscarriage, after having considered termination earlier in the pregnancy, need no longer fear being investigated and prosecuted.

The idea that police are trawling through women’s period tracking apps is abhorrent. And it’s remarkable they have time for that but not many other crimes.

@Witchling

There's no reason to criminalise anything by that logic.

The vast majority of people are never going to consider stabbing someone. That doesn't mean it shouldn't be illegal to do so.

YANBU OP, fantastic news, and also thanks for starting a thread with a clear outcome for those of us who don't want to keep going back to that long thread about how terrible this might be for the poor kiddies and trawling through to see updates amidst the nonsense.

You already said this on the other thread. Unless two posters have both decided this is a "culture war" issue in those exact words. 😵‍💫 Not sure why you feel the need to pundit this all over the shop TBH.

But this means that women can have proper medical care, and don't need to worry about negotiating a police investigation while dealing with a still birth or being kept alive to be an incubator.

@Witchling

The vast, vast majority of women are never investigated by the police.

A few regretful cases should not be justification for imposing such an extreme change to a settled issue.

Don't be so bloody ridiculous. It's not changed the law at all on abortions after 24 weeks it just seeking not to criminilise women. Abortions after 24 weeks are vanishingly rare and this isn't going to become a mass issue so reform won't have a basis to start a culture war other than to roll back abortion laws because they are a bunch of misogynistic twats.

This. I wholeheartedly agree. People forget that it’s an actual babies life

You can’t call someone stupid because you don’t agree with their opinion

This isn’t true

please educate yourself. this is not at all what the amendment to the law will mean.

Which bit?

Big, big assumption there that Reform will take power. It’s excellent news.