Abortion limit to be discussed this week

[AB Asks]

The abortion limit is going to be discussed this week in parliament in full for the first time in 17 years. An attempt to lower the upper abortion limit will be made. Ann Widecombe believes the public want a debate on the limit as babies born at 24 weeks now stand a chance of survival. What do you think � with more premature babies surviving and thriving than ever should the limit be reduced?

[ummmm]

The limit should be reduced regardless of the survival rate.

[unruliejulie]

I find it shocking that the baby can be aborted up to 24 weeks. The baby is so advanced by that stage. It needs to be lowered and soon!

I agree with ummm, its irrelevant what the survival rate is.

[alijangra]

It is about time they addressed this issue.

[Goodsoulette]

No, no, no, no! It does vary from one health authority to the next. An abortion is legal in the UK up to 24 weeks, however if their is substantial risk to the women or the foetus there is no time limit. I believe late terminations of pregnancy, start with stopping the babies heart via an injection and then the woman is given drugs to induce a labour. Obviously this a very traumatic experience for the lady and would not be a decision that has been taken lightly, generally some sort of abnormality with the child or severe health problems to the lady. I do know of a girl who had an abortion at 20 weeks privately because she was 14, she had felt to scared to tell her dad and her mum had just died of cancer (when she was pregnant), so again things have to be taken case by case.
In Somerset you can have a termination up to 15 weeks. Then after, I think there has to be serious reasons for you needing to have one.

It is extremely rare that this would happen. Most health authorities impose a 12 - 16 week limit on these cases (where a mistake has been made with first step contraception and the baby is not wanted). I know that until very recently here you could not get your scan sexed because they feared that couples from cultures where it was favourable to have a boy not a girl would ask for abortions on these grounds.
I think we need to tackle the children in schools and get safe sex drummed into them. We have an 18 yr old lad at work who says he never uses a condom and it revolts me that he would put himself and his numerous conquests at such risk. As a child of the 80s (I am 27) we had safe sex drummed into us, i grew up terrified of HIV and unwanted pregnancy.

[Goodsoulette]

Also would like to add that if they didnt put the most extreme horrific cases in the press and on the tv, it would not make "good" viewing now would it?? Noone is going to gasp at a woman who is 23 weeks pregnant and found out at her 20 week scan which got delayed for 2 weeks that her baby has no brain, and would not survive outside the womb and decided to have a termination. My cousin only recently has a late TOP after finding her baby had no kidneys. A delayed scan meant she was 24 weeks when she had this termination.

http://www.spiked-online.com/Articles/00000000 54E2.htm

I think this is a very good article and points that I think should be highlighted are that at 24 weeks a fetus does not have a life, medicine can intervene to keep that fetus alive. Also 40 % of women by the age of 45 have had an abortion in the first trimester whereas midtrimester abortions are very rare so we cannot empathise with them.

I think maybe guidelines as to what makes a late abortion acceptable should be changed.

[Goodsoulette]

http://www.spiked-online.com/Articles/00000000 54E2.htm

oops got the link wrong!

[dot.hawkes]

What statistics do you have to show us that more babies being born premature are surviving the birth and growing into healthy human beings?

[Champagne]

This question does not have a yes or no answer. As Goodsy accurately points out there are always going to be extreme cases which warrant such a late termination in pregnancy. I couldn't possibly commit to an answer either way because I think this issue is always down to individual cases/circumstances.

It's the same with the subject of Euthanasia, which if you ask me, abortions are a legal variation of.

[Pippa68]

I agree with Champagne & Goodsoulette.

How many of the abortions performed in the UK are under 20 weeks? my guess would be a very high amount.

I would imagine that any perfomed after that stage are for a specific reason outside a woman just changing her mind.

A very grey area indeed.

[Goodsoulette]

Of 186,416 abortion 66% were carried out before 9 weeks gestation. 1 % between 20-22 weeks, with the majority for eugenic reasons. 124 of these were carried out at 24 weeks, again all for medical reasons. 88% of abortions are carried out before 13 weeks.

I think a big factor in getting terminations performed earlier ould be to have more clinics. More medical terminations could be offered this way. A girl who reports to her GP that she is pregnant at 5 weeks may not get to a clinic for another 5 -6 weeks. if she could be seem within 2 a cheaper safer alternative could be offered.