The Calthorpe Clinic in Birmingham supports the right for people to limit their family. It was the first abortion provider to open a clinic outside London. For 40 years, it has been providing surgical and medical terminations for thousands of women each year.

In figures released today, the number of women who are getting repeat pregnancy abortions has reached a new record high. New statistics show that of the women who received abortions last year, one third of them were already on their second, fourth, or even eight termination. This has sparked debate about whether abortions are simply being used as a form of contraception.

In 2008, the figures show that there were 64,715 repeat abortions, and a further breakdown indicated that 11,354 were on their third abortion, with 2,780 on their fourth. The statistics also show that 46 women had received a total of eight or more pregnancy terminations.

According to 2007 figures, the number of abortions in teenage girls had dropped, which the health minister, Dawn Primarolo said was key, because it showed that teenagers are taking better contraceptive measures to begin with. Most of the abortions taking place were also noted to be those using the abortion pill rather than medical abortions, as women have been going for abortion help and using abortion clinics before 10 weeks of gestation.

Recent figures released in England and Wales, show that the number of women getting pregnancy abortions has dropped by 1.6 %. In 2008 there were 195,296 terminations, while in 2007 there were 198,499. This is the first fall in abortions in three years. Also lower, were the statistics for terminations of pregnancies in teenagers under 16 years of age, and those under 18 years of age. The highest abortion rate is seen in the 19 year age group which currently stands at 36 per 1000 women.

Health Minister, Dawn Primarolo said that the drop in the abortion rate is good news and said that “More abortions are now happening at under 10 weeks gestation. This is a key priority for us – to reduce the time women have to wait at what is already a very difficult time.” In response to the drop in teenage pregnancies, Liz Stopes from the Marie Stopes abortion clinics said, “We are pleased that those teenagers who have aspirations other than motherhood appear to be protecting themselves against unintended pregnancy.”

The Spanish cabinet has given the go ahead for the liberalisation of the country’s strict laws regading pregnancy abortions. This proposal to allow abortions for those up to 14 weeks pregnant must still be reviewed by parliament, with Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero lacking a majority. According to the Deputy Prime Minister Maria Teresa Fernandez de la Vega, this change is necessary for a woman’s dignity. The Roman Catholic Church and various anti-abortion groups have started campaigning against the proposal. (more…)