✣ Britain marks 50 years of legal abortion
What happened? Sunday marks 50 years since the Abortion Act received Royal Assent and became law. Since then, it is estimated that there have been almost nine million abortions in Britain. Every working day around 700 take place. The Act was steered through parliament in 1967 by Liberal MP David Steel. In 2007 he told the Guardian: “I don’t think we had expected anything like those numbers but when people say there are ‘too many’ I say: ‘All right, you give me the right figure.’ ” What the British media are saying In general the British media have taken a pro-choice stance, though a recent BBC programme, Abortion on Trial, featured a variety of arguments. However, pro-lifers said the programme was slanted. The Mail on Sunday also claimed that producers “cherry picked” favourable results from a specially commissioned ICM poll, such as that 87 per cent of religious people support abortion in some circumstances. Some of the survey’s more noteworthy findings were that less than half of respondents (46 per cent) approved of abortion in the case of rape, and only 45 per cent if the mother’s life is in danger. Also, despite a campaign from abortion lobbyists for “decriminalisation”, only six per cent said that there should be no legal time limit on abortion. What pro-lifers are saying in the Spectator, Melanie McDonagh said that public debate over abortion had become increasingly narrow. Not only are pro-lifers such as Jacob Rees-Mogg publicly vilified, but there is little honesty about the realities of abortion. For instance, the law only permits abortion when a birth would cause greater mental or physical danger. But, McDonagh asked, “do you know anyone – anyone? – who’s had an abortion who actually fell within the legal requirements?” A one-minute silence will be held at 11.04 on Friday morning – the exact moment of the Bill’s passing – in Old Palace Yard, Westminster, and a Mass and prayer vigil will be held in Westminster Cathedral that evening. The Pro-Life Alliance are encouraging churches to toll their bells 50 times on Sunday morning.
