Choice News: A Step Toward Decriminalisation — A Long Road Still Ahead

In a historic vote on 17 June 2025, parliament backed a change to abortion law that will end the prosecution and the threat of prison for women who end their own pregnancies by 379 to 137.

MPs also rejected a last-minute amendment put by anti-abortion MPs that would have banned abortion via telemedicine — a lifeline for people in rural areas, survivors of abuse and anyone facing barriers to in-person care.

This is a seismic shift — one that starts to drag a 160-year-old law into the 21st century.

What Changed — And What Stayed the Same

✅ What Passed:

• The vote amends the 1861 Offences Against the Person Act meaning women can no longer be criminally prosecuted for ending their own pregnancies.

❌ What Didn’t Change:

• Abortions still require approval from two doctors within the conditions laid out in the 1967 Abortion Act.

• Time limits remain unchanged: legal up to 24 weeks.

• Assisting someone with an unlawful abortion is still a criminal act and could still lead to prosecution.

Who Voted For — And Against

Party	For	Against	Abstained/Not Voting
Labour	291	25	85
Conservative	4	92	0
Liberal Democrats	63	2	—
Reform UK	0	4	1
Other/Independents	21	14	—
Total	379	137

Why This Matters Now

More than 100 women have been investigated for abortion-related crimes since 2020. Some were miscarriages. Others were desperate acts in abusive situations.

Decriminalisation means no woman will face police raids or courtrooms simply for ending her own pregnancy.

But This Victory Isn’t Safe — and the US Shows Why

While we move forward, the US continues to roll back reproductive rights. There, the anti-abortion playbook is increasingly tied to xenophobic and anti-immigrant rhetoric.

This strategy is coming here: tie abortion rights to immigration, use moral panic to divide, and turn healthcare into a wedge issue.

The Road Ahead: Reform and Resistance

Still Needed:

• Abortion to be removed entirely from the 1861 Offences against the Person Act 

• Telemedicine to be preserved and expanded

• Public education to be promoted to shift the narrative and treat abortion as part of general reproductive healthcare.

Final Thought

The vote on 17 June 2025 was a turning point, but not the destination. If we let the right turn abortion into another culture war or frame this as a “gift” to immigrants, we will lose not just this reform — but the foundation of reproductive freedom itself.

This was never about charity. It’s about justice, autonomy and healthcare for all.