Only a tiny percentage of abortions performed since 1968 have been carried out on health grounds, it has been revealed.
A response to a Parliamentary question into abortion claimed that of the 6.4 million abortions carried out on residents of England and Wales, 143 (0.006 per cent) were vital in saving the life or preventing serious permanent harm to the health of the mother. Another 23,778, or 0.37 per cent, were performed under section 1(1)(c), whereby the “continuance of pregnancy would involve the risk to the life of the woman, greater than if the pregnancy were terminated”.
The figures were revealed by Earl Howe, parliamentary undersecretary at the Department of Health, following a question by Lord Alton of Liverpool.
The statistics will add weight to the argument, voiced by many pro-life campaigners, that society’s views on the sanctity of life has diminished due to the normalisation of the act and the vast number of abortions currently happening.
The Catholic Church has repeatedly declared that the unborn child can in no circumstances be called an aggressor against its mother.
Josephine Quintavalle, co-founder of Comment on Reproductive Ethics (CORE), commented: “The child has no rights at all. In abortion clinics the law is not respected; figures never seem to fall and people don’t realise.
“The pro-life movement should feel optimistic, there is no better moment than now to consider tackling the abortion act and making significant changes. It is time for pro-life to come together and work together strategies to turn public opinion into a positive impact.
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