The House of Commons has just voted to decriminalise self‑induced abortions up to birth. What this means is that a woman can abort her child at any stage up to birth and not face criminal penalties.

This shocking decision is the biggest change in the English law pertaining to this issue since the Abortion Act in 1967.

It remains a criminal offence to help a woman with an abortion outside the legal bounds.

The current legislation allows abortions up to 24 weeks of gestation on certain grounds which are very broadly interpreted and applied, and even later in case of serious anomalies or where there is a perceived threat to the physical or mental health of the mother.

Those regulations remain for hospitals or clinics. What is new is that a woman who has an abortion outside those limits won’t be persecuted.

According to the latest figures, more than 250,000 abortions are performed every year in England and Wales. The equivalent of 54 abortions per 100 live births.

Removing criminal penalties could encourage late-term or unregulated home abortions, especially with easier access to abortion pills nowadays. Abortion pills can be obtained through remote consultation, during which crucial details such as gestational age and conditions of the pregnancy can be easily concealed.

But the change to the law, which now goes before the House of Lords, removes a further protection for unborn human beings. In theory, a woman can kill her baby on the day before it is due and face no criminal charge. (In practice, women were very rarely prosecuted for having an abortion outside the legal limits).

Reaction from the Catholic Church and pro-life group has been swift.

The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales stated: “This decision significantly reduces the protection of unborn lives and will result in grave harm for pregnant women. Women will be even more vulnerable to manipulation, coerced and forced abortions. This legal change will also discourage medical consultation and make the use of abortion pills for dangerous late-term, at-home abortions more likely.”

They continued: “Abortion is often chosen because of the personal challenges that a woman faces, as well as the lack of proper suitable guidance and support. The enacting of New Clause 1 will result in women being more alone, vulnerable, and isolated.”

Dawn McAvoy, from Both Lives Matter UK, commented: “In effect, parliament have voted to facilitate dangerous backstreet abortions [via the abortion pill at home] where dangerous, even late-term abortion is legitimised, and girls are left more vulnerable than ever.  This is just not healthcare, that is abandonment.”

Right To Life UK spokesperson, Catherine Robinson, said: “Pro-abortion MPs have hijacked a government bill to rush through this radical and seismic change to our abortion laws after just two hours’ debate. This is the primary time this extreme abortion amendment has been debated within the House of Commons, and there was no consultation with the general public on this seismic law change. We will likely be fighting this amendment at every stage within the Lords.”

In Northern Ireland, in 2019 the British government introduced a new legal framework stating that women “will not be criminalised in relation to their own pregnancy under any circumstances”.

Similarly, here in Ireland, legal limits and regulations do not apply to women that self-procure an abortion but campaigners such as the National Women’s Council of Ireland want to extend decriminalisation to anyone involved in abortions.