Dear Supporter,
Apologies for emailing you two days in a row, but its been a busy day in Parliament and elsewhere, and I wanted to give you an update.
Buffer zones amendment withdrawn
Firstly, we have the good news that Rupa Huq’s buffer zone amendment was withdrawn during Committee stage today. Dr Huq, the pro-abortion Labour MP for Ealing Central, had yet again tabled an amendment to introduce buffer zones around abortion facilities in England in Wales, this time to the Public Order Bill.
However, after admitting that “it could be improved”, Dr Huq has decided not to take her amendment to a vote, and so the amendment has now been withdrawn.
However, as you can read about in our news story, Dr Huq used some very offensive rhetoric, including comparing the presence of pro-life vigils to the brutal murder of Sarah Everard. This represents a shocking escalation in the vilification of pro-life citizens, and must be challenged.
Highest abortion numbers on record
Today also saw the publication of the 2021 Abortion statistics. Sadly, abortion numbers are at an all-time high. There were 214,256 abortions for women resident in England and Wales in 2021; the highest number since the Abortion Act was introduced.
It is a tragedy that so many unborn lives have been lost. It is also an indication that women need real help and support in their lives, not the quick fix of abortion.
SPUC predicted that abortion numbers would continue to rise when the dangerous pills-by-post scheme was introduced in March 2020. DIY/at home abortion is a gift for abusers who can force women to order abortion pills over the phone, keeping their abusive and often violent behaviour hidden. These figures point to the growing problem of abortion coercion, and highlight the importance of our coercion campaign and petition, which I sent to you yesterday.
Update on Northern Ireland
The 2022 Northern Ireland abortion regulations are being debated in the House of Lords this evening. In the Commons, the Regulations came up for forthwith approval yesterday and were opposed by pro-life MPs. The vote has been deferred until tomorrow – meaning that there is still time to write to your MP if you haven’t yet done so. The details on how to do this can be found here.
Many thanks for your support,
|
|
Alithea Williams
Public Policy Manager
|
|
|
|
