The 2018 Abortion Statistics, published today by the Department of Health and Social Care, show that 205,295 unborn babies were killed by abortion last year.
The total is just short of the highest on record (205,598 in 2007), but the number of abortions performed on women resident in England and Wales is 200,608, the most ever recorded.
Increase in medical abortions shows abortion ideology is triumphing over women’s health
One noticeable trend in the statistics is the sharp increase in abortions carried out using pills (so-called medical abortions). 71% of abortions were medically induced, higher than in 2017 (66%), and almost double the proportion in 2008 (37%). The proportion of medical abortions has almost doubled in the last ten years from 37% in 2008, and since 2014, medical abortions have been the most common method of abortion.
Calling this trend alarming, SPUC’s Antonia Tully said that medical abortion is being pushed for ideological reasons.
“Abortion pills are presented as a safe and simple solution (often by researchers with close links to the abortion industry), however they are often harmful to women,” she said. “Common side-effects include vomiting, severe pain and excessive bleeding. A recent Swedish study of women who had an early medical abortion at home found that 26% of women bled for more than four weeks.”
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The complication rate for medical abortions this year is 3 times that of surgical (253 to 83). The overall rate of 1.7 complications per 1000 abortions has continued to climb from 1.6 in 2017 and 1.5 in 2008.
Funding the deaths of Northern Ireland babies
The statistics also reveal that in 2018 there were 1,053 abortions for women from Northern Ireland, an increase of 192 from 2017. This has already been picked up by activists campaigning to impose abortion on Northern Ireland, but the report notes that “looking at the historical series, numbers of Northern Ireland residents having an abortion in England and Wales is lower than when it reached a peak of 1,855 in 1990.” Moreover, it confirms that there “has been an increase in the number of women from Northern Ireland having an abortion in England and Wales since the funding announcement” – meaning the Government’s pledge to fund abortions for women ordinarily resident in Northern Ireland.
Horror behind the statistics
The way that abortions are funded also reveals the profit-driven nature of the abortion industry. “72% of abortions took place in the independent sector, an increase of 2 percentage points from 2017 and an increase of 19 percentage points from 2008.”
As always, the statistics bring home the horror of abortion. The report coolly states that “3,269 abortions were due to the risk that the child would be born seriously handicapped.” It also details how many babies had their hearts stopped by a lethal injection during the abortion procedure.
“For abortions at 22 weeks or beyond, feticide is recommended by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists prior to the evacuation of the uterus to stop the fetal heart. In 2018, of the 1,856 abortions performed at 22 weeks and over, 51% were reported as preceded by a feticide and a further 45% were performed by a method whereby the fetal heart is stopped as part of the procedure…”
Behind all of these statistics lie a dead baby and a mother who lost her child to abortion.
“Those pushing for medical abortion also ignore the horrific psychological effects it has on women,” Mrs Tully concluded;
“Women should not be facing the mental anguish that accompanies self-administered medical abortions, nor any abortion for that matter. These statistics show that women’s true health and well-being is being sacrificed at the altar of an extreme abortion ideology.”
LifeNews Note: Courtesy of SPUC. The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children is a leading pro-life organization in the United Kingdom.
