PRESS RELEASE: Lords’ Amendments Threaten to Push Women Back Into the Courts

PRESS STATEMENT

For Immediate Release

Lords’ Amendments Threaten to Push Women Back Into the Courts

Abortion Rights condemns attempts by a group of peers to overturn Clause 191 of the Crime and Policing Bill and roll back recent progress on abortion rights. Led by Baroness Monckton and Baroness Stroud, the proposed amendments would remove a crucial amendment passed by MPs in July, which would protect women and pregnant people from prosecution for ending their own pregnancies. This amendment is attached to the Criminal Justice Bill — which has not yet passed, meaning the protections are not yet in force.

Abortion Rights recognises that the wider Crime and Policing Bill contains many dangerous and deeply concerning provisions. This is not one of them. The amendment secured in July would represent a significant and hard-won step forward, ensuring that women and pregnant people themselves cannot be prosecuted for ending their own pregnancies. It would move the law in the right direction, away from criminalisation and closer to treating abortion as a matter of healthcare.

This is not about healthcare – it’s about control. The peers’ amendments force women back into the criminal justice system, dragging their private medical decisions through the courts, and leaving them vulnerable to investigation and prosecution.

Kerry Abel, Chair of Abortion Rights, said:

“This is a dangerous and cynical move to turn back the clock. These peers want to push women back into the courts and even into prison for making their own choices. Abortion is healthcare – not a criminal matter. Parliament must reject the anti-abortion amendments and stand on the side of compassion, not criminalisation.”

These efforts are taking place in an environment where well-funded anti-abortion groups like ADF UK are circling Parliament, lobbying to chip away at abortion rights piece by piece. Their strategy is clear: to reverse even limited reforms, reassert control over women’s lives, and reintroduce criminal penalties through the back door.

The attempt to remove Clause 191 and reinstate mandatory in-person consultation requirements would also undermine safe and accessible abortion care, particularly for women facing violence, poverty, or living far from services. Telemedical abortion has been proven safe and effective and is supported by medical experts. Reintroducing barriers only serves to delay care and put women at risk.

NOTES TO EDITORS

• In July 2025, MPs voted in favour of an amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill tabled by Tonia Antoniazzi MP, which ensures that no woman or pregnant person can be prosecuted for ending their own pregnancy.
  
  
• This amendment was attached to the Criminal Justice Bill, which is currently progressing through Parliament. The Bill itself has not yet been passed into law, meaning these protections are not yet in force.
  
  
• This was not a vote on full decriminalisation of abortion – the wider criminal framework, including offences under the 1861 Offences Against the Person Act and the 1967 Abortion Act, remains unchanged.
  
  
• Abortion continues to be regulated under the 1967 Abortion Act, and remains a criminal offence under the 1861 Act if performed outside the legal framework, carrying a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
  
  
• Clause 191 reflects the July amendment and ensures that women and pregnant people cannot be prosecuted for ending their own pregnancies.
  
  
• The amendments tabled by peers would remove these limited protections, effectively reopening the door for women to be investigated and prosecuted, and pushing deeply personal medical decisions back into the criminal courts.
  
  
• ADF UK (Alliance Defending Freedom) is a well-funded anti-abortion group with a track record of lobbying MPs and peers to roll back reproductive rights. In recent months, they have intensified their efforts around Parliament, providing legal briefings, hosting events, and mobilising opposition to Clause 191 as part of a wider campaign to re-criminalise abortion through incremental changes.
  
  
• Abortion Rights is the national pro-choice campaign in the UK, working to defend and extend women’s rights to safe, legal, and accessible abortion services.
  
  
• For interviews or further information, please contact: choice@abortionrights.org.uk