Abortion (Sex-Selection) Bill

Lord Steel of Aikwood Excerpts

Tuesday 16th December 2014 Lords Chamber

[Earl Howe]

My Lords, we are not moving in that direction partly because it is frequently not possible to determine the sex of the foetus after an abortion.

[Lord Steel of Aikwood (LD)]

Does the Minister agree that sex-selection abortion is not just illegal, as he says, but totally abhorrent? Does he further agree that, as the BMA has said that in some rare medical cases it may be necessary, it is really up to his department to issue clearer guidance as the Bill to which my noble friend referred is a 10-minute rule Bill that is not going anywhere? It is up to the department to issue guidance on this matter.

[Earl Howe]

My Lords, we issued guidance in May of this year. It sets out the expectations around the procedure to be adopted by the two doctors involved: certifying that an abortion meets the criteria set out in the Act by considering the individual circumstances of the woman and how they reached their decision. The guidance also reaffirms our position that abortion on the grounds of gender alone is illegal.

Abortion

Lord Steel of Aikwood Excerpts

Wednesday 12th February 2014 Lords Chamber

[Earl Howe]

My Lords, the provisions of the Equality Act 2010 must be adhered to by all who provide a public service. Any specific allegations about gender-selective abortions being undertaken will be reported to the police. Abortion on the grounds of gender alone is illegal, as I have said. The Abortion Act is very clear on that point.

[Lord Steel of Aikwood (LD)]

Have my noble friend and his department had any discussions with the General Medical Council on this matter? It needs to be made publicly clear that, as he said, whatever happens in other countries, this practice is not acceptable in this country.

[Earl Howe]

My Lords, my department is currently engaged in discussions with the GMC and other bodies with a view to publishing further guidance to doctors on these issues.

Abortion

Lord Steel of Aikwood Excerpts

Thursday 6th June 2013 Lords Chamber

[Earl Howe]

I am not aware of any prosecutions in the last 12 months. The Crown Prosecution Service reviewed the evidence of the pre-signing of HSA1 forms and decided not to take further action against some individuals, but other investigations are continuing.

[Lord Steel of Aikwood]

I thank the Minister for the steps that have been taken to stop abuses of the 1967 Act. Will he confirm that there has been a welcome drop in the total number of abortions recently, but that there is still a problem of what are called repeat abortions, where women present who are clearly using abortion as a form of contraception, which is thoroughly undesirable?

[Earl Howe]

My noble friend is right. The abortion rate across England and Wales has been static since 2009. The good news is that the abortion rate for women under 18 has gone down. There was a 9.6% decrease in the rate between 2010 and 2011. On repeat abortions, the news is not so good. The proportion of repeat abortions for women who had abortions in 2011 was 36%. The figure was higher than it had been the previous year, which is a matter for concern.

Abortion

Lord Steel of Aikwood Excerpts

Tuesday 4th December 2012 Lords Chamber

[Earl Howe]

In answer to the last question I have no firm information about when the police inquiries will complete their course. They have been ongoing for some months. The noble Lord, Lord Alton of Liverpool, is right to raise his concern, but I can again state emphatically that under the law of this country it is illegal to perform an abortion on grounds of sex selection alone. If evidence of such practices comes to light, the penalties are that the doctor or doctors concerned may be referred to the GMC. The Care Quality Commission will be called in and there will be the possibility of police investigation and prosecution resulting. This is not something that any provider of NHS-funded abortions should ever consider doing.

[Lord Steel of Aikwood]

Does my noble friend agree that the real scourge of illegal abortion occurred before the 1967 reforms, when every hospital in the land had patients admitted for septic and incomplete abortion, and up to 50 women a year died as a result of criminal abortion? Does he accept that, in addition to the gender selection question, another worrying feature is the number of women reporting for repeat abortions, who appear to be using abortion as a form of contraception? Does that concern his department?

[Earl Howe]

My Lords, I pay tribute to my noble friend for the role that he played in bringing the 1967 Act to the statute book. We have no particular evidence that repeat abortion is a rising issue. Contraception prevents the establishment of a pregnancy and the number of women visiting contraception clinics has, I am pleased to say, gone up, particularly among the young. We are seeing a fall in the number of abortions in the teenage age group. Unfortunately we are also seeing a rise in abortions in the 20 to 29 age group. While I agree with my noble friend’s initial comments, the focus of the public health effort has to be to bear down on the figures as we see them today and make sure that all women have access to contraceptive advice.