A Commons move to decriminalise abortion has won cross-party support from MPs.
Senior Labour MP Dame Diana Johnson has tabled an amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill which would see the “removal of women from the criminal law related to abortion”.
Thirty-one MPs have already backed as “sponsors” the proposed change to the law which would end the prosecution of women who terminate pregnancies after the 24-week limit.
They include Caroline Nokes, Tory chair of the Commons women and equalities committee, Daisy Cooper, Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrats, Green MP Caroline Lucas, and Plaid Cymru’s Westminster leader Liz Saville Roberts.
London MPs who are sponsoring the amendment include Camberwell and Peckham MP Harriet Harman, Streatham MP Bell Ribeiro-Addy, Rupa Huq, Ealing Central and Acton, and Matthew Pennycook, Greenwich and Woolwich.
MPs are expected to get a free vote on the amendment if it is called when the Criminal Justice Bill is debated after Easter.
Dame Diana, chair of the Commons home affairs committee, told The Standard: “There is a widespread understanding that the laws around abortion in England and Wales are now outdated particularly the Offences Against the Persons Act 1861 which punishes a woman with life imprisonment for abortion.
“My amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill has strong cross party support with over 30 MPs from six parties in the Commons and will remove the woman completely from the criminal law.”
She added: “It is also supported by leading medical bodies including The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, the Royal College of GPs and the Royal College of Midwives and the BMA. Mumsnet, Refuge and Rape Crisis all support the amendment too.
“Abortion providers will still be governed by The Abortion Act 1967 and all the requirement around that including the 24 week time limit will apply.”
The new clause would disapply existing criminal law related to the accessing or procurement of abortion care from women acting in relation to their own pregnancy at any gestation, ensuring no woman would be liable for a prison sentence as a result of seeking to end her own pregnancy.
It would not change any law regarding the provision of abortion services within a healthcare setting, including but not limited to the time limit, the grounds for abortion, or the requirement for two doctors’ approval.
Health Secretary Victoria Atkins has signalled she would back the decriminalisation of abortion.
In a recent interview with The Telegraph, she stressed her voting record, which includes support for decriminalisation and buffer zones outside abortion clinics, “speaks for itself”.
In 2019, the UK Parliament backed moves to repeal sections 58 and 59 of the Offences Against the Person Act (OAPA) 1861 in Northern Ireland – with questions raised about how Westminster would respond to equalise the legislation across the UK.
The 162-year-old law banning abortion was amended in 1967, legalising abortion with an authorised provider up to 28 weeks, which was lowered to 24 weeks in 1991.
There are very limited circumstances in which an abortion is permitted after 24 weeks, like when the mother’s life is at risk or the child would be born with a severe disability.
