20 March 2023
by Robert Armour
Ministers are being urged by campaigners to review the charitable status of ‘crisis pregnancy centres’ giving unethical advice to pregnant woman.
These centres are organisations outside the NHS that offer advice to women with unplanned pregnancies. Many are registered charities.
Continued: https://tfn.scot/news/charity-urges-urgent-review-of-charity-status-for-crisis-pregnancy-centres
Concerns that Scotland lagging behind rest of UK as anti-abortion protests continue outside clinics
Libby Brooks Scotland correspondent
Mon 13 Mar 2023
Pro-choice campaigners are urging all Scottish National party leadership candidates to commit to accelerating the imposition of protest-free buffer zones around abortion clinics, as healthcare professionals describe the “remorseless” impact of anti-choice activity on their working lives.
Amid growing concern that Scotland is trailing behind the rest of the UK, after safe access zones passed their final parliamentary hurdle in the Commons last week, there was a protest and counter-protest outside the Sandyford clinic in Glasgow at the weekend. The clinic offers a range of services including abortion, support for sexual assault victims and transgender healthcare.
BMJ 2023; 380 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.p563
Published 08 March 2023
Matthew Limb
The UK government is facing fresh pressure to overhaul abortion law after new research found strong backing among women and healthcare professionals for change.
The Shaping Abortion for Change (Sacha) study, led by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), recommended allowing nurses and midwives to authorise an abortion, prescribe abortion drugs, and perform vacuum aspirations as they do in miscarriage care. If adopted, this would mean scrapping the requirement under the Abortion Act 1967 for two doctors to authorise an abortion.
Continued: https://www.bmj.com/content/380/bmj.p563
Global study shows significant shift in UK attitudes on matters such as casual sex and assisted dying
Robert Booth, Social affairs correspondent
Tue 7 Mar 2023
The UK has overtaken Canada, Germany and Australia to become one of the world’s most socially liberal nations towards divorce and abortion, the latest wave of a global study has revealed.
Significant increases in the last five years in people saying the practices are justifiable is mirrored by sharply increasing acceptance of homosexuality, casual sex and prostitution over the same period, the World Values Survey found.
Feb 27, 2023
By Eleanor Layhe & Divya Talwar, BBC Panorama
Women are being misled and manipulated about abortion by some crisis pregnancy advice centres in the UK, according to evidence from a Panorama investigation.
The centres operate outside the NHS and tend to be registered charities. Most say they don't refer women for abortions, but offer support and counselling for unplanned pregnancies.
Continued: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-64751800
The tech giant is carrying adverts styled to look like real internet search results for women seeking pregnancy advice
Shanti Das
Sat 25 Feb 2023
Women seeking online advice about abortions are being directed to pregnancy counselling services run by anti-abortion campaigners, an Observer investigation has found.
Google adverts that are styled to look like real search results and appear above genuine listings are routinely being shown to people searching key terms relating to pregnancy and abortion.
Feb 16, 2023
A man and a woman have pleaded not guilty to illegally aborting a baby and concealing the birth of a child.
Elliot Benham, from Wingfield, Swindon and Sophie Harvey, from St Mary's Road, Cirencester, are also charged with illegally disposing of a baby's body. The charges relate to alleged actions between September and December in 2018.
Continued: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-64661344
The proposal now has one last step to go through before becoming law
BY CARA ROGERS
1 FEB 2023
'Buffer zones' around abortion clinics in England and Wales are closer to becoming a reality following overwhelming support from the House of Lords in a debate, which took place on 30 January. The proposed legislation now has one last step to go before being passed – final approval from the House of Commons.
The proposed provision for buffer zones is an amendment to the Public Order Bill, which was added by Labour MP for Walthamstow, Stella Creasy.
Women said to be travelling hundreds of miles for appointments or waiting several weeks
Lucy Hough and Hannah Moore
Thu 26 Jan 2023
The UK is facing a “crisis point” in abortion provision, experts say, with rising demand and restricted access to care in many areas putting unprecedented pressure on struggling NHS services.
Healthcare professionals described a “terrifying” state of affairs in which women are travelling hundreds of miles for appointments or waiting several weeks before they are seen.
The Texas-based group 40 Days for Life has brought its aggressive tactics to more than 1,000 cities in 65 countries.
Jessica Bateman
January 9, 2023
There were four or five protesters outside Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow, Scotland, the first time Dr. Greg Irwin saw them. He was driving to his job as a consultant radiologist when he noticed the group hoisting placards opposite the parking lot, close to the maternity unit. BEFORE I FORMED YOU IN THE WOMB I KNEW YOU, one sign read, alongside a Bible reference. “Oh, my God,” Irwin thought. “It’s one of those American protests.”
After he parked in his usual spot, an older woman holding rosary beads smiled as he approached. “We’re holding a prayer vigil,” she explained, adding that they were offering “support and advice” to women. Irwin noticed their placards were branded with the logo of 40 Days for Life. When he googled the name later that night, he expected to find a local church organization. Instead, he discovered the shiny, high-budget website of a Texas-based group, emblazoned with pictures of men in sharp suits with dazzling white teeth. A counter in the corner ticked down the numbers of babies “saved” worldwide. Scrolling, he saw a map festooned with red pins, marking group locations all over the world. Irwin stared at his screen, bewildered. How could there be a connection between a group in Texas and the woman outside his hospital in Scotland?
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