Press Release: Abortion Rights Condemns Cruel Criminalisation of Woman Seeking Abortion Care

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

London, 25 April 2025 — Abortion Rights strongly condemns the ongoing prosecution of Nicola Packer, a woman on trial in London for allegedly taking abortion pills during the second COVID-19 lockdown.

Nicola, 44, is being prosecuted under the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 — a Victorian-era law that predates women’s suffrage and still underpins abortion law in England and Wales. Despite seeking help from a registered provider and acting during a time of extreme national crisis, she now faces the trauma of criminal trial.

“This case is nothing short of a tragedy,” said Kerry Abel, Chair of Abortion Rights. “It is outrageous that in 2025, a woman is in the dock for ending a pregnancy during lockdown. Nicola needed care and compassion — not a criminal investigation. We must end the use of archaic laws to punish people for making decisions about their own bodies.”

The Abortion Act 1967 is no longer fit for purpose, offering only limited exceptions to an outdated criminal framework. While abortion up to 23 weeks is technically legal under certain conditions, accessing it remains a postcode lottery — and prosecutions like Nicola’s prove the law causes fear, confusion and harm.

Abortion Rights is calling for urgent reform and the full decriminalisation of abortion, in line with the rest of the NI  and international best practice. Nicola’s prosecution is a chilling reminder of how easily reproductive rights can be rolled back.

This trial should never have happened.

ENDS

Abortion Rights is the only grassroots pro-choice campaign in Britain, working for safe, free, legal and accessible abortion.

For media inquiries:

Email:  choice@abortionrights.uk

Website: www.abortionrights.org.uk