The conversation around decriminalising abortion must be grounded in evidence

The future of abortion law and services must be guided by evidence, not swayed by anti-abortion rhetoric and misinformation, says Alison Wright

BMJ 2026; 392 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.s603
27 March 2026
Alison Wright, president of Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists

The House of Lords voted last week to support an amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill that removes the possibility of prosecuting women for ending or attempting to end their pregnancy.1 This is a landmark and long overdue moment for women’s healthcare in England and Wales. Yet in the days following the vote much of the public conversation has been shaped by alarming misinformation.2,3,4 Claims that this law reform would allow abortion “up to birth,” remove safeguards, or encourage more women to access abortion later in pregnancy are simply not true.

Continued: https://www.bmj.com/content/392/bmj.s603

27.03.2026

Commentary

Alison Wright

Crime and Policing bill

Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists

UK – Creasy attempt to change abortion law ‘not supported by service providers’

British Pregnancy Advisory Service says NC20 amendment to criminal justice bill ‘not right way’ to overhaul the law

Hannah Al-Othman
Tue 10 Jun 2025

An attempt to change the law on abortion led by the Labour MP Stella Creasy is not supported by “any of the abortion providers in the country”, a leading pro-choice charity has said.

Rachael Clarke, the head of advocacy at the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (Bpas), said Creasy’s NC20 amendment to the criminal justice bill “is not the right way” to overhaul abortion laws.

Bpas is instead backing a separate proposal, NC1, put forward by another Labour backbencher, Tonia Antoniazzi.

Continued: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jun/10/creasy-attempt-to-change-abortion-law-not-supported-by-abortion-providers-bpas

After ‘Shocking’ Police Abortion Guidance, Here’s What Campaigners Want To Happen Next

“We only have a few weeks to win this vital fight for our freedoms," said Labour MP Stella Creasy.

By Amy Glover
27/05/2025

Following the release of new police guidance detailing how to seize phones and search for medications used to terminate pregnancies in the homes of women after unexpected pregnancy loss, campaigners and doctors are urgently calling for abortion to be decriminalised.

The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) has branded the guidance on child death investigation, which comes from the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) and was updated earlier this year, as “truly shocking”.

Continued: https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/doctors-condemn-post-pregnancy-loss-police-guidleines_uk_682c8fc3e4b095274fad867f

IPAS Ghana congratulates Dr Eunice Brookman-Amissah

February 27, 2025

Former country Director of IPAS Ghana, Dr Koma Jehu-Appiah, has congratulated Ambassador Dr Eunice Brookman-Amissah on her appointment by President John Dramani Mahama to the Council of State.

“We fully trust in your capabilities to deliver,” says Dr Jehu-Appiah in a statement issued in Accra yesterday copied the Ghanaian Times.

Ambassador Dr Brookman-Amissah is a physician and an advocate who has dedicated most of her career to improving women’s reproductive health and rights globally and especially in Africa.

Continued: https://ghanaiantimes.com.gh/ipas-ghana-congratulates-dr-eunice-brookman-amissah/

27.02.2025