New figures show government failing to cut teenage abortion

Westminster, 27 August 2004 - The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC) has pointed out how new statistics show that the government is failing to cut abortion among teenage girls, despite its undertaking to do so.

Paul Tully, SPUC's general secretary, said: "The government pledged to halve teenage abortions over the current decade. New figures for last year actually show a rise in the recorded abortion rate among under-16s from 3.7 to 3.9. Worse, the morning-after pills which are part of the government's strategy will have caused many unrecorded abortions because of what they can do to young embryos.

"The government's strategy on abortion among teenagers is proving to be a disaster for young people and for the babies who are aborted. Promoting morning-after pills also encourages risky sexual behaviour and appears to be fuelling the explosion in sexually transmitted infections among young people.

"The government pretends to care but it plainly does not. Earlier this month it announced guidelines which allow girls under 16 to have abortions without parental consent or notification.

"The figures also confirm that Britain's abortion holocaust exceeded six million lives by the end of 2003. In England and Wales alone, the total to date is nearly 5.7 million.

"Recent proposals from Lord Steel and others to introduce a right to abortion up to 12 weeks will lead to higher abortion rates, and must be resisted."