Aborted pregnancies in England, Wales soars to new record, data show
The number of aborted pregnancies in the United Kingdom soared to a record high last year, according to government data.
Between January and June 2022, the number of pregnancies that were aborted in England and Wales soared to 123,219, up more than 14% compared with the first half of 2021, according to data released by the U.K.’s Department of Health & Social Care.
The 2022 number topped the previous high of 110,299 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Christian Concern, a British Evangelical advocacy group, said the record number equates to roughly 680 pregnancies aborted in England and Wales every day, or the equivalent of “28 lives ended every single hour.”
“It is with heavy hearts that we witness the devastating toll upon innocent lives. Each number represents a precious child, fearfully and wonderfully made, but whose lives have been cut short,” said Andrea Williams, CEO of Christian Concern.
“May God, in His mercy, use these sorrowful statistics to ignite a renewed determination within society to protect the lives of unborn babies, to offer compassionate support to those who need it and support families through good policies.”
While data for the second half of 2022 have yet to be released, the sharp jump in the latest numbers indicated they could top 2021’s numbers.
A reported backlog has delayed the annual abortion statistics from their usual release in June until January 2024.
The jump in the number of aborted pregnancies last year, said Williams, comes as more DIY at-home abortion products are becoming available, along with other factors, including a “cost-of-living crisis and a lack of pro-family policies.”
Just two years after government officials voted in favor of allowing women to undertake abortions in their own homes without medical supervision, DIY at-home abortions accounted for 54% of all aborted pregnancies in the first six months of 2022, up slightly from 52% in 2021.
In August 2022, lawmakers amended the 1967 Abortion Act to allow eligible women in the first 10 weeks of pregnancy to continue to take both medicines for early medical abortion at home.
Earlier this month, a British woman was sentenced for illegally using DIY at-home abortion pills to end the life of her baby at least eight weeks after the legal time limit of 24 weeks, according to Williams.
“The sheer scale of these statistics underscores the urgent need for a collective awakening, a return to valuing and protecting every human life, no matter how small or vulnerable,” she said. “Our culture's embrace of abortion as a solution to complex problems is a chilling reflection of our diminished respect for the sanctity of life.
“Let us strive for a future where we, as a nation, choose compassion and hope in the recognition that every life, from conception to natural end, is a precious gift from God.”
