Penny Mordaunt's links to anti-abortion evangelical lobby group

[PurgatoryOfPotholes]

extract

A public relations company co-founded by the Conservative leadership candidate Penny Mordaunt did paid lobbying work for an evangelical doctors’ group that wants to outlaw abortion, even in cases of rape, while she was still listed as a director and shareholder.

Mordaunt’s campaign denied that she was “still working” for Media Intelligence Partners (MIP) when it agreed a public relations contract with the Christian Medical Fellowship. It has been unable to deny that she remained one of three company directors and a shareholder, however, and it is unclear whether Mordaunt, now Trade Minister, benefited financially from MIP’s lobbying for the Fellowship.

One of the reports on the Fellowship’s website suggests abortion is wrong, even when a woman has been the victim of a sexual assault, because keeping the child is “a display of courage, strength and honour”. Abortion in cases of rape “simply sacrifices a second innocent party to the crime”, it says: “Many women who have been raped believe that abortion is immoral, and that the child is simply a second victim, and that if they can get through the pregnancy they will have conquered the rape.”

(continues)

The Fellowship has been sharply criticised in the past. In 2007 MPs on a committee reviewing abortion laws accused it of confusing the evidence given to them. Six doctors who gave evidence to the 2007 inquiry, which was considering recent scientific research related to abortion, failed to disclose that they were members or activists with the group, which had already given its own evidence. When this was discovered the MPs asked that all witnesses disclose relevant affiliations.

Source: New Statesman

The I've always supported Women's Rights statement rings hollower by the day.

Revolting. Get Mordaunt out.

I see Tom's off.

Can we just stop the constant witchhunt on Penny Mordaunt now - are you all secret friends of Liz Truss?

Penny Morduant could be the Prime Minister of this Country with all the power that brings, her statements, her connections, her beliefs, her truthfulness and integrity deserve to be scrutinised.

I think Penny Mordaunt is basically a TRA and a massive PITA, but a PR company takes the business offered. Leave her alone.

Surely they can choose their clients?

What Achilles said. It's not a massive plus, but it's pretty tenuous as a reason for someone not to be voted for.

I don't know why on earth she doesn't just stand up for herself - she's a Tory for crying out loud, presumably she felt it was reasonable to take the business at the time? Why does she keep hiding?

See, in a democracy, we scrutinise and yes, often criticise the politicians elected to represent people and create legislation.

It is legitimate to support a politician more than another politician.

I don't want anyone that's been involved in a campaign that lobbies for the removal of reproductive rights as PM, and no I won't be quiet about it.

PR companies are not criminal law barristers- they do not follow the 'cab rank rule' that compels barristers to accept the cases of applicants if they have room in their workload to do so.

I considered myself whether it might be that the company simply went where the money was offered, without fear or favour. Then I asked myself whether I really thought it possible that her PR company would have accepted a job to run PR for a radical feminist group campaigning to repeal the GRA 2004, if the feminists had offered enough money.

I found that I did not.

And no, I will not leave a prospective prime minister "alone" over her or his affiliations and possible conflicts of interest. "Leave her alone" would be an appropriate plea if I were making petty comments about her clothing, or make-up. But I am not. I am publicising the lobby groups that may have contributed to her income.

Getting worse by the day for Penny. I don't believe she believes in sex based rights. She is coming across as dishonest and wanting to cover her own back.

A female Johnson, but without the massive number of children, or a history of hiding in fridges.

This is an upgrade on our current prime minister, to be fair, but that is an indictment of Johnson, not a character reference for Mordaunt.

I think she’s a gender woo woo loon. I don’t think (from this evidence) that she has any designs on the right to abortion.

Flipping Nora. She is horrendous.

It goes to the heart of judgement and ethical code. Did the firm have a policy of money before principles? Is that PM's moral compass. We already know she's a liar, her word can't be trusted. I fully expect her to be ready to break her promises according to what's best for her.

This is terrible. I agree with you OP, I'm in marketing - agency side. We dropped our largest client last year due to their unethical business practices - and that was relating to refunds and making it difficult for users to cancel their subscription, not to lobbying against basic abortion rights.

Either that or it is in line with her moral principles. That is permitted - lots of people are anti-abortion.

I don't want any of them in government.

She can't vie to be pm and also want to be left alone.

She's not anti abortion she voted in favour of diy abortions being retained and interfering in Northern Ireland to enforce right to abortion.

I'm gauging that she is weakly pro-choice, as in, she will vote that way in the absence of any incentives not to. But it's not a subject she feels any/much passion for, unlike trans activism campaigning.

I doubt any pro-life evangelicals would see this as a reason to vote for her.

She's much worse than Boris. Don't remember Boris personally trying to make legislation "trans friendly"..

I think this idea that she is better than Boris is what is getting her votes, there isn't any scrutiny of what she really thinks.

Though the subject is Penny Mordaunt’s possible links to this anti-abortion evangelical campaign, I just wanted to add that abortion after rape does not seem to be a happily ever after story of bravery and good overcoming evil in practice.
If women who have been raped want to keep the child they can, nothing at present is preventing them. That is not a reason for banning abortions for women who choose not to.

There is not a very good prognosis for children of rape. For a start the foetus may be harmed by the woman’s stress hormones, especially if she is going through and enforced pregnancy,

Then it would seem there are often very sad consequences for the child:
trauma.blog.yorku.ca/2016/01/children-born-of-rape-face-a-painful-legacy/

To think the under U.K. law a rapist could have parental rights too.

I think she's the same as Johnson

Give her time and she'll be hiding in a fridge as well

Give her time and she'll be hiding in a fridge as well

Today, hiding in a fridge sounds like not a bad idea tbh

Bloody hell. That's a really good point, that a rapist might have parental rights. What a mess