The new ethics of abortion

Criminalization of Women Accessing Abortion and Enforced Mobility within the European Union and the United Kingdom

“…Abortion in many of the territories currently dependent, associated with, or subsumed within the United Kingdom of Britain and Northern Ireland, and those formerly colonized by it, 2 has been marked by section 58 and 59 of the Offenses Against the Person Act 1861, which provided penalties for women seeking the termination of a pregnancy and those who would assist them. The adoption of the 1967 Abortion Act in 1968 has made abortion more of an acceptable feature of life in some parts of the United Kingdom (Aiken et al, 2019;Greenwood, 2001). The Act applies to England, Wales, and Scotland and now Northern Ireland.…”

“…Significantly, the Abortion Act 1967 allows doctors to take into account the woman's "actual or reasonably foreseeable environment," that is her socio-economic conditions -a clause, which allows doctors to apply that element of the law with a significant amount of latitude. Arguably, if it had not been interpreted liberally by doctors who overwhelmingly proscribe to the view that it is damaging to the mental health of a woman to be forced to undergo a pregnancy against her will, the act would be unworkable in practice (Greenwood, 2001). This points to a risk, inherent in a law dependent on latitude in its application, and giving the ultimate decision, not to the woman, but an overseeing medical professional, as the same law could be used to restrict what is currently accessible (cf.…”

“…The Act was, arguably, a product of its time, a result of concerns with reform and attempts to solve social problems through paternalistic welfare policies: a product of concerns over the effects of dangerous "back-street" abortions on the reproductive health of the nation and reverence to the medical authority which entrusted doctors as gatekeepers to a wide range of social and ethical decisions (BPAS, 2013;Greenwood, 2001;Sheldon, 2016). Such an attitude stands in stark contrast to current beliefs in which these choices belong to the patients (Sheldon, 2016).…”

In the world of Dolly, when does a human embryo acquire respect?

“…In England, Scotland, and Wales abortion is permitted by law when two doctors decide ''that the pregnancy has not exceeded its 24th week and that the continuance of the pregnancy would involve risk …'' 26 Despite this freedom, almost 90% of abortions are performed before 13 weeks and fewer than 2% take place after 19 weeks. 27 ''A growing number of doctors who are comfortable with early abortion decline to provide, or even refer, for later procedures. Many NHS hospitals have established arbitrary time limits of 12 or 14 weeks …'' 28 beyond which they are unable or unwilling to carry out terminations of pregnancy.…”

Women's reflections upon their past abortions: An exploration of how and why emotional reactions change over time

“…Although the law places the abortion decision in the hands of doctors (Greenwood, 2001) in practice women make this decision and their choice is respected (Lee, 2003). Abortion is also legal in the US and most European countries.…”