The Campaign for Decriminalisation

We support the full decriminalisation of abortion in the UK, which would mean removing abortion from the criminal statute and regulating it like any other healthcare.

Here are six ways in which UK abortion law is harmful, which explain why we support decriminalisation:

  1. Not fit for practice
    Abortion law is outdated, not evidence-based and prevents best possible care.

  2. Two doctors' signatures
    This mandatory requirement causes delays in access to care and means women and pregnant people are not truly in charge of their own decision-making and bodies.

  3. Nurse/midwife provision
    The law prevents nurses and midwives from having a full role in abortion care despite being more than capable of doing so.

  4. Time limits
    Strict arbitrary time limits mean some, often more vulnerable, people are forced to continue unwanted pregnancies.

  5. Stigma
    The use of criminal law in healthcare sends a strong message of social disapproval and reinforces abortion-related stigma.

  6. Risk of prosecution
    There is a risk of prosecution and imprisonment for those who have or provide an abortion outside of legal stipulations, such as accessing abortion pills online, having or providing an abortion outside legal time limits or if an abortion is not authorised by two doctors. We believe that no one should ever be imprisoned for ending their own pregnancy

Decriminalisation of abortion is supported by many professional medical organisations, including the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, the Royal College of Nursing, the Royal Society of Midwives, the Royal College of General Practitioners, the British Medical Association and the Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare.

Abortion was decriminalised in Northern Ireland in 2019, meaning Northern Ireland now has a more human-rights compliant abortion framework than the rest of the UK.

For more information, please see our position statements on decriminalisation and time limits and our response to the jailing of a women in June 2023 for 28 months for having an abortion outside of legal restrictions.