Members of the public are being urged to contact their MP about current abortion laws which ‘discriminate’ against disabled babies.
At the moment abortions can be carried out up to full term if the baby is found to have a disability.
But Tory MP Fiona Bruce headed a Parliamentary inquiry which found this law to be discriminatory, and is now asking people to write to their MP in support of their report.
Compassionate
Writing in The Universe, a Roman Catholic newspaper, Mrs Bruce said help was needed to “enshrine in our laws and medical culture what our society should always aspire to: a compassionate and just affirmation of the equal value of all human beings”.
Close to 300 contributors gave evidence to the inquiry into disability abortions, including parents, doctors, academics, disability rights groups and legal experts.
Mrs Bruce said the overwhelming response was that allowing abortion up to birth is “discriminatory” and negatively affects public attitudes towards disability.
Capabilities
She said the Paralympic Games which London hosted last year showed to the world “the capabilities and dignity of men and women who possess a range of disabilities”.
But she added, “anti-disabled attitudes still sadly exist”.
Last year, around 2,700 babies were aborted because doctors thought there was a “substantial risk” that the child would be seriously handicapped.
The inquiry recommends that Parliament either equalises the upper limit for disabled babies with that of able-bodied babies, or removes the section of the law that allows for disability abortions altogether.