Jeremy Hunt is poised to join the health secretary in backing the decriminalisation of abortion if a historic vote takes place next month.
The chancellor has previously said terminations should be permitted for women only up to 12 weeks after conception. But this weekend he told friends he is minded to support an amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill — a wide-ranging piece of government legislation on policing and law enforcement — which would end centuries-old law and stop women facing prosecution and possible prison sentences for seeking to end a pregnancy early. He cited the fact it was a women’s health issue.
It remains illegal in most circumstances for women to have an abortion after 24 weeks. Under the Offences Against the Person Act, which has been in place since 1861, a mother of three was sent to prison last year, and roughly 100 women have faced criminal investigations since 2019. Many have suffered mental health crises over the course of years-long police inquiries.
Asked how she would vote, Victoria Atkins, the health secretary, told The Daily Telegraph that her record — which includes supporting the creation of “buffer zones” to stop pro-life activists campaigning outside abortion clinics — “speaks for itself”.
Caroline Nokes, chairwoman of the women and equalities committee, Dr Dan Poulter, a Tory MP and former minister who trained in obstetrics and gynaecology, and Harriet Harman, who, as the longest-serving female MP, is Mother of the House, are among those set to support the measure.
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It was tabled by the Labour MP Dame Diana Johnson. Supporters expect it to succeed if the Commons Speaker, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, allows a vote — which, given its cross-party backing, appears likely.
Another proposal that could be debated is a second amendment from the Tory MP Caroline Ansell, lowering the legal time limit for abortions from 24 to 22 weeks. The last time the legal limit was changed was in 1990, when it was lowered from 28 weeks.
Ansell, who has said her Christian faith is part of why she became an MP, has the support of 25 MPs, including two from Labour, with the DUP expected to announce its backing this week. Her allies say many legal abortions take place around the point that, because of medical advances, a premature birth would now be viable. They argue MPs last revised the limit on similar grounds.
However, Rachael Clarke, chief of staff at the British Pregnancy Advisory Service, said: “These proposals are not supported by any medical bodies, are not based in clinical fact and do not have the support of the British public.”
Whips are aware that some Catholic Tory MPs would not feel able to back the Criminal Justice Bill — which also includes flagship measures on policing and homelessness — in the event that Johnson’s amendment on decriminalising abortion is passed.
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Downing Street has indicated its MPs will be given a free vote, as is the custom on matters of conscience such as abortion. The government’s crime measures are expected to be debated by MPs at some point before the Easter recess begins on March 26, but not before the budget on March 6.
Rishi Sunak’s spokesman said last year that the prime minister had no plans to address the 1861 law underpinning criminalisation. Sunak has abstained on the issue of abortion during his time as an MP.
A government source would not “speculate” on whether Sunak would support Johnson’s measure, noting there was no certainty on timings or which amendments would be debated.
The heads of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, the Royal College of General Practitioners and the Royal College of Midwives all support Johnson’s bill.
