Parliament votes 379 to 137 to remove threat of prosecution for women ending their own pregnancies in biggest shake-up since 1967
MPs have voted overwhelmingly to decriminalise abortion for women in a historic parliamentary decision that marks the most significant change to abortion law in nearly 60 years.
Labour MP Tonia Antoniazzi’s amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill passed with a crushing majority of 242, with MPs voting 379 to 137 in favour of the landmark reform.
The change will remove the threat of “investigation, arrest, prosecution, or imprisonment” for any woman who ends her own pregnancy – bringing England and Wales in line with Northern Ireland.
END TO VICTORIAN-ERA LAW
The vote marks the end of abortion being treated as a criminal offence under the 163-year-old Offences Against the Person Act 1861 and the Infant Life (Preservation) Act 1929.
Under current law, abortion remains technically illegal and carries a potential life sentence – though women can access terminations under exemptions provided by the 1967 Abortion Act.
The Gower MP told the Commons she had been moved to act after seeing vulnerable women investigated by police over suspected illegal abortions.
There is simply no world in which prosecuting a vulnerable woman who may have experienced a medical complication, miscarriage, or stillbirth is the right course of action,” Ms Antoniazzi declared.
NO CHANGE TO 24-WEEK LIMIT
During the debate, Ms Antoniazzi assured MPs that crucial safeguards would remain in place:
- The current 24-week limit stays unchanged
- Abortions still require approval and signatures from two doctors
- Healthcare professionals acting outside the law face prosecution
- Abusive partners using violence or poisoning to end pregnancies remain criminalised
The amendment specifically targets only women acting in relation to their own pregnancies – not third parties.
‘HARD WON VICTORY’
The British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) hailed the vote as a “landmark moment for women’s rights.
Chief executive Heidi Stewart said: “This is the most significant change to our abortion law since the 1967 Abortion Act was passed.
There will be no more women investigated after enduring a miscarriage, no more women dragged from their hospital beds to the back of a police van, no more women separated from their children because of our archaic abortion law.
RISING PROSECUTIONS
The push for reform came amid shocking statistics about prosecutions:
- Six women have appeared in court in the past three years charged with ending their own pregnancies
- For every woman who ends up in court, at least 10 others face prolonged police investigations
- Women facing investigation are often victims of domestic abuse, trafficking or sexual exploitation
Dr Ranee Thakar, President of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, warned: “Alarmingly, prosecutions of women have been increasing in recent years.
CROSS-PARTY SUPPORT
The amendment secured backing from 60 MPs across party lines, with MPs given a free vote allowing them to vote according to conscience rather than party whip.
Justice minister Alex Davies-Jones had previously stated the Government was neutral on decriminalisation, leaving it as a matter for Parliament to decide.
A coalition of major medical bodies threw their weight behind the reform, including:
- The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists
- The Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Health
- MSI UK
‘UNMISSABLE MOMENT’
Dr Janet Barter, President of the Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare, representing 14,000 members, said: “Abortion is a healthcare issue, not a criminal one.”
She added: “No one should face investigation or prosecution for seeking or providing sexual and reproductive healthcare.
The medical bodies described the vote as an “unmissable moment” to protect women and girls from prosecution.
NOT YET LAW
While the vote represents a major victory for campaigners, the change has not yet become law.
The amendment has been added to the government’s flagship Crime and Policing Bill, which is still making its way through Parliament.
It will become law once the Bill receives Royal Assent.
CAMPAIGN SUCCESS
BPAS launched its campaign to decriminalise abortion in 2016, with Stewart noting: “We could not have envisaged that within a decade such progress would be achieved.
She added: “In the past six years, we have seen more progressive reform of abortion law than we had seen in the previous 50.
The vote was described as “testament to the strength of support for abortion rights across the healthcare sector, civil society, parliament, and the country as a whole.”
VULNERABLE WOMEN PROTECTED
Ms Antoniazzi emphasised that those investigated are often the most vulnerable: “The reality is that no woman wakes up 24 weeks pregnant or more and suddenly decides to end their own pregnancy outside a hospital or clinic.
“But some women, in desperate circumstances, make choices that many of us would struggle to understand.”
The reform ensures these women will no longer face criminal prosecution for their actions.
