At the last minute, MPs are now set to vote on an amendment to the Health and Care Bill on Wednesday 30 March on whether to make harmful DIY abortions permanent.
This amendment would sidestep the government’s decision to end the temporary policy in six months’ time. This isn’t simply another battle between ‘pro-life’ and ‘pro-choice’. Anyone who properly looks at the data ought to see that this policy is harmful to women. We need to make sure that every MP in Westminster pays attention to the evidence.
Please urgently write to your MP to oppose this dangerous amendment.
Follow the guidance below for points you can make to your MP.
- Freedom of information data has shown that as many as 1-in-17 women taking these abortion pills require hospital treatment. Around half of these require surgical treatment to complete the abortion. This means over 10,000 women have been treated in hospital following the approval of pills-by-post abortion.
- Another study has shown that emergency ambulance responses are three times higher for pills-by-post abortion.
- A mystery client investigation demonstrated that abortion pills can be obtained using false identities, false gestational age and no NHS registration. This shows that making the pills available by telemedicine is wide open for abuse.
- Video footage has shown the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) illegally posting abortion pills to a women who said she wanted to terminate her pregnancy because she didn’t “want to look pregnant on holiday.”
- A study has shown that less than 1-in-5 complications following telemedicine abortions are reported. Claims that telemedicine abortions are safe vastly understate the numbers of complications.
- Recent polling found that as many as 1-in-20 women aged 18-24 said they had been “given something (tablets / substance) to cause an abortion” without their knowledge or consent. This abuse is clearly much easier with telemedicine abortion.
- In answer to a parliamentary question, the government admitted that it has no idea how many pills have not been taken by the woman who requested them or what happened to those pills.
- Polling has also shown that 86% of GPs are concerned about the risk of women being coerced into an abortion without an in-person consultation.
- Polling showed that 84% of adults in England say they are concerned about women being at risk of being coerced into an abortion without an in-person consultation.
- A clear majority (70%) of respondents to the government consultation said that the temporary measure of pills-by-post abortion should end immediately.
Please urge your MP to promise to vote against the amendment to protect women’s safety and revert to requiring an in-person clinical assessment before administering these pills.
Find your MP’s contact details.