Royal College of Nursing (RCN) General Secretary Dr Beverly Malone said:

"The RCN welcomes the fact that doctors at the British Medical Association (BMA) conference have voted against reducing the upper limit on abortion from 24 weeks. RCN members working in sexual health and primary care are concerned first and foremost with helping women with unwanted pregnancies. The discussion about foetal viability distorts this principle.

"Only 1.6% of abortions in 2003 occurred at 20 weeks gestation or over. RCN members know first hand that women in these circumstances are desperate and that abortion is a very difficult choice for them. Reducing time limits would potentially drive vulnerable women to seek late abortions elsewhere.

"In fact, the RCN believes that the discussion on abortion should concentrate on ways to increase access to services in early pregnancy and allow nurses greater involvement in providing services."

There were 181,582 legal abortions carried out in England and Wales in 2003. 2,927 (1.6%) were carried out at 20 weeks and over.

The RCN respects the right of its members not to be involved in abortions under the conscientious objection clauses of the act.

The law on abortion in Northern Ireland is governed by a combination of statute. Therapeutic terminations are carried out in Northern Ireland on strictly medical grounds (e.g. to save the life of the mother) irrespective of the stage of pregnancy.

http://www.rcn.org.uk