This year sees the 50th anniversary of the Abortion Act 1967,
which legalised abortion in England,
Wales, and Scotland.
Whilst writing this post I have become acutely aware of the coldness and inhumanity of statistics. We are asked to consider the abortion statistics over a period of fifty years, with numbers running into hundreds of thousands, even millions, of unborn children 'legally' killed.
The mind is numbed by these shameful and terrible figures, which can have the perverse effect of insensitizing us to the reality of the physical, emotional, and physiological suffering in every abortion.
From 1968 to 2015 a total of 7,928,057 unborn babies were aborted under the sanction of this legislation.
A breakdown of the Abortion Statistics, England and Wales: 2015, published by HM Government, Department of Health,
shows rapid growth between 1968 and 1988, with a gradual increase over the next two decades, reducing slightly between 2008 and 2015.
a) In 1968 - 23,641 legal abortions, involving 22,332 UK
residents, and 1,309 non residents.
b) In 1988 - 183,798
legal abortions, “ 168,298 UK
residents, “ 15,500 non residents.
c) In 2008 - 202,158
legal abortions, “ 195,296 UK
residents, “ 6,862
non residents.
d) In 2015 - 191,014 legal abortions, “ 185,824 UK residents, “ 5,190 non residents.
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In 1968 NHS funded 14,492 abortions.
In 2015 NHS funded 182,243 abortions.
In 1968 NHS funded 14,492 abortions.
In 2015 NHS funded 182,243 abortions.
a) NHS funded 14,492 abortions with
7,840 privately funded.
d) " 182,243 (98.07%) " 3,581 (1.93%)
d) " 182,243 (98.07%) " 3,581 (1.93%)
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Funded abortions
performed in NHS hospitals and NHS Independent sector hospitals
In 1968 there were no abortions
carried out in NHS Independent Sector hospitals, but in 2015 a total of 125,884
abortions were performed. This represented 69.1% of all NHS abortions that
year.
a) NHS hospitals 14,492 abortions. NHS Independent Sector hospitals NIL abortions
d) " 56,359 (30.4%) " " 125,884 (69.1%) "
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In 2011 it was estimated, that on average, every abortion
cost the NHS £680.00
Costs have almost certainly increased since then, but using
these old figures, the cost to the NHS in 2015 would have been approximately
£124 million. Of this amount £85.68 million would have been paid to the NHS
Independent Sector, such as Marie Stopes, BPAS, etc. who own the abortion
clinics, and who inexplicably are authorised by the Government to counsel
pregnant women as to the ‘best’ course of action for themselves and their
unborn child. So much for independent advice! There seems to be one rule for
financial services where money is involved and strict rules are in place to
protect clients, and another for pregnancy advice centres where there is no
independent advice available for clients, and where the currency is counted in
human lives.
LINK - https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/570040/Updated_Abortion_Statistics_2015.pdf
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Acknowledgement to the Daily Telegraph, 22 November, 2011, for the following information concerning the cost of abortions:-
Updated figures from the Department of Health show that, contrary to earlier claims, much more public money goes to private clinics rather than NHS hospitals.
Campaigners say the new calculations provide more reason to stop the organisations that offer counselling to pregnant women also performing terminations, on the grounds that it represents a conflict of interest.
They are calling for spending watchdogs to investigate why Parliament was
“misled” over the scale of the “abortion industry”.
In the words of Lord Alton, the cross-bench peer, “The millions of pounds generated by the private abortion industry, which have never been revealed to Parliament, demonstrate why Frank Field has been absolutely right in demanding that the multi- million pound link between the referral agencies and the abortion industry should be severed.”
In September, 2011, the Conservative backbencher Nadine Dorries tabled an amendment to the Health and Social Care Bill that would have meant all women considering ending a pregnancy were given advice independent of the abortion provider.
This eminently sensible proposal was defeated, but the Department of Health
has said it will consult on the “best” form of counselling.
Nadine Dorries - “If anything proves that the link between the abortion provider and the woman facing a crisis pregnancy should be broken, this is it - too much money changes hands for anyone to argue that the private abortion provider can remain objective during the decision-making process.”
LINK:- http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/womens-health/8904455/Abortion-costs-30m-higher-than-previously-thought.html
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With acknowledgement to a recent article in the ‘Catholic Herald’ written by a doctor, which highlighted the hypocrisy of
certain members of the UK medical profession when assessing abortion requests.
Whilst 98% of abortions in Britain
are carried out on the grounds of reducing mental health risk, a lack of
resources and willingness to judge genuine mental health risk has liberalised
abortion policy to such an extent, that simply seeking a termination is now
considered sufficient evidence.
The meaning and intention of the clause limiting abortions to cases where continuing the
pregnancy presented a risk to the mental health of the mother, has been abused and misused, effectively leading to the present situation of ‘abortion
on demand.’
There is now reliable evidence that abortion is not associated with any
decreased risk of mental health disorders.
Women with an unintended pregnancy should be informed that the evidence
suggests that they are no more or less likely to suffer adverse psychological
effects, whether they have an abortion or continue with the pregnancy (Royal
College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists)
Ostensible mental health benefits of abortion are specious (Turnaway Study)
This is important, since 98 per cent of abortions in Britain
are carried out on the grounds of reducing mental health risk.
If ‘mental health risk’ is a fallacy in the vast majority of these cases, then there is no legal justification for abortion in those cases, and those
involved are guilty of serious criminal offences.
Why is the law openly defied and who is responsible for policing the law? Internal
policing by the medical establishment is clearly not working, suggesting perhaps that an
independent forum similar to the IPCC which
deals with complaints against the police, should be set up as a matter
of urgency.
LINK - http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/issues/january-13th-2017/abortion-policy-is-stuck-in-the-dark-ages/
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An on-line
Petition deserving support, seeks government action to allow taxpayers to choose not to have
their tax used to finance NHS abortions. I have often wondered about this, but assumed that it would not
be possible within the vast Inland Revenue tax system, to set up a suitable working
model. I now believe, that given
the will, this unethical obligation on
all tax-payers to contribute to the NHS funding of abortions whether they like
it or not, could be addressed. Sounds complicated, but is it? I
would not envisage a reduced tax bill, and in fact the system could stay
exactly as it is, thus minimizing the extra work involved. The
Inland Revenue, through a suitably worded extra tick-box in the tax return, would be aware of the numbers of those objecting to supporting abortion, which would be conveyed to the NHS, possibly as a percentage of the total, who would calculate the
actual amount of money involved, deduct that percentage from the amount allocated to the abortion side of the NHS,
which could then be used for other needy areas such as Mental Health. In this technological
age, such a system would surely not present too many problems? This may be too
simplistic a solution, and you may well have better ideas. If so, I would be
pleased if you could share them in the comment box, thank you.
LINK:- https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/178191
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Finally I cannot end this appraisal without mention of an excellent article by Mary Ann Kreitzer on 'lesfemmes-thetruth' blogsite;
'The March for Death versus the March for Life - Abortion has done nothing to advance women's freedom'.
The article makes compulsive reading and includes an extensive bibliography. The author is an American citizen and writes primarily about the American scene, however I'm sure that the conclusions she draws applies equally to our society in the UK. These include, among others, that:-
'The March for Death versus the March for Life - Abortion has done nothing to advance women's freedom'.
The article makes compulsive reading and includes an extensive bibliography. The author is an American citizen and writes primarily about the American scene, however I'm sure that the conclusions she draws applies equally to our society in the UK. These include, among others, that:-
The legalization of abortion has done nothing to advance women’s freedom.
Prior to the legalisation of abortion in the USA, the truth is that maternal deaths from abortion had already been declining, due to advances in medical care, and most illegal abortions were, in fact, performed by physicians. All legalisation did was to allow more girls and women to be exploited, abused, traumatized, maimed, injured and killed before, during and after abortion.
Women and girls still die from abortion
The legalisation of abortion has not ended child abuse (child abuse rates have increased since 1973) or violence against women. At least two studies of maternal death rates found that homicide was the leading cause of death among pregnant women.
Other research has linked abortion to increased rates of breast cancer, substance abuse, depression, suicide, subsequent pre-term birth, anxiety disorders, and other problems.
Before abortion was legalised, a woman or girl who was being pressured
or coerced to abort could resist on the grounds that it was illegal, unsafe and
immoral. Legalisation has made it easier for those around her to insist that
because abortion is legal, it must be “safe,” and because it is “socially
approved,” it must be moral. It makes it easier for them to refuse to support
her desire to continue the pregnancy and insist that she abort anyway.
For a list of related articles and resources
to read and share (see original article)
LINK:- https://lesfemmes-thetruth.blogspot.co.uk/2017/01/i-received-article-below-in-my-email.html#more
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Holy Family - Paolo Veronese (1528-88)
To conclude, if you link to the sites below, and indeed many other sites dealing with abortion, it becomes clear that the legalisation of abortion has been a disaster. Prior to legalisation, advocates argued that such a step would have a positive effect on society. Fifty years down the road, this prediction has proved to be false. Far from empowering women, they have become the losers. The human race is destroying itself. God is mocked, but not for ever.
http://www.life.org.nz/abortion/abortionkeyissues/impact-on-society-abortion/
http://abortionrisks.org/index.php?title=Social_Effects_and_Implications_of_Abortion
Holy Family - Paolo Veronese (1528-88)
To conclude, if you link to the sites below, and indeed many other sites dealing with abortion, it becomes clear that the legalisation of abortion has been a disaster. Prior to legalisation, advocates argued that such a step would have a positive effect on society. Fifty years down the road, this prediction has proved to be false. Far from empowering women, they have become the losers. The human race is destroying itself. God is mocked, but not for ever.
http://www.life.org.nz/abortion/abortionkeyissues/impact-on-society-abortion/
http://abortionrisks.org/index.php?title=Social_Effects_and_Implications_of_Abortion
