Study showing regret after abortion must be considered by the Minister For Health says Pro Life Campaign

A comprehensive study showing that 44 per cent of women expressed varying degrees of regret about their abortions “must be urgently considered by the Minister for Health”, the Pro Life Campaign (PLC) has said.

They were responding to the Irish Contraception and Crisis Pregnancy Study 2010 (ICCP 2010), produced by the HSE's Crisis Pregnancy Programme (CPP).

The study showed that 31pc of women who had abortion experienced "some regrets", with 13pc reporting that they experienced “a lot of regrets”. This represents an increase from 2003, when 22pc reported experiencing some regret, with 11pc saying they had a lot of regrets.

Spokesperson for the PLC, Dr Ruth Cullen, said the figures showed that the abortion debate “needed to make room for the voices of the increasing number of women who regret their abortion”.

She said: "While there has been considerable media focus on the stories of women who wished to see abortion legal in Ireland, the same cannot be said for the stories of women who regret their abortions. This has to change.

She said: “Even organisations like the National Women's Council of Ireland, which are supposed to represent all women, dismiss organisations that seek to express the pain of women hurt by abortion.

Dr Cullen also said that Minister James Reilly needs to take into account the experiences of women who regretted their abortion and ensure that counselling services also acknowledge this reality.

She expressed surprise that the CPP had not conducted research into the mental health impact of abortion, given the fact that there were now a number of studies showing that abortion presented a considerable risk to the mental health of women.

Dr. Cullen said: “A number of peer reviewed studies have now shown that women who have abortions are up to 30pc more likely to experience subsequent mental health problems. This is even after those studies controlled for women with pre-existing mental health conditions.

“One might have expected a comprehensive study on crisis pregnancy to have examined this area.”

Dr Cullen also noted that the study's findings on attitudes to abortion were compromised by the question asked.

According to the survey, 45 per cent of adults believed abortion should be permissible in all circumstances, down from over 50 per cent in a similar study in 2003. And 44 per cent said it should be available under certain circumstances, up from 39 per cent in 2003.

However, Dr Cullen said, the survey's question relating to abortion when there is a risk to the woman's life “failed to make the distinction between medical interventions in pregnancy to save the mother's life and induced abortion, the sole aim of which is to end the life of the baby.

She said that this shortcoming in the research made the findings on attitudes to abortion “effectively irrelevant”.

Pro Life Campaign says Labour Party abortion stance 'ignores hurt abortion causes women'

A motion passed at  Labour Party's conference (15th April 2012)  in favour of abortion legislation has been described by the Pro Life Campaign (PLC) as “ignoring the hurt that abortion causes women”.

In a statement, PLC spokesperson, Dr Ruth Cullen said that those who spoke in favour of the motion had “tried to imply that legislation would safeguard women’s lives”.

“In fact, the motion was about seeking abortion on demand,” Dr Cullen said.

She added: “Those who supported the motion should know that Ireland, without abortion, is the safest country for pregnant women and that there is a clear distinction between necessary medical treatment in pregnancy and direct abortion, the aim of which is to end the baby’s life.

“Repeatedly, figures from the United Nations on maternal mortality show that Ireland is a world leader in this area. Yet instead of celebrating this achievement, pro-abortion campaigners repeatedly distort the facts.

“The adoption of the motion also shows that the Labour Party is ignoring the hurt that abortion causes women.

“Increasingly, research is showing that abortion is a leading risk factor for increased mental health problems for women.

“Despite this, Labour has assumed an outdated position that refuses to take on board this evidence, or the stories that many women are telling about the trauma that abortion has caused them.”

Dr Cullen added: “There is nothing progressive about adopting a policy that disregards the right to life and ignores the negative effects of abortion on women.

“This latest evidence of Labour’s aggressive stance in favour of abortion makes it all the more imperative that voters hold Fine Gael to their election promise to retain Ireland’s pro-life stance.”

Ed Sheeran releases 'Small Bump' video

British chart-topper Ed Sheeran’s latest release ‘Small Bump’ has become a big talking point in recent weeks.  With beautiful life-affirming and moving lyrics about the loss of an unborn baby, the song has had close to 10 million hits on YouTube. Watch and listen by clicking on the image below.

URGENT: Fine Gael needs to hear from a lot more pro-life people

The Postcard to Politicians campaign is going well but it’s clear that Fine Gael needs to hear from a lot more pro-life people so that enough pressure is brought to bear on the leadership within Fine Gael. The situation is very serious at present and there is a real danger that abortion legislation could become a reality if those who oppose it do not speak up.
During the recent Dáil debate on abortion the Minister for Health, Dr James Reilly strongly implied that the Government is committed to introducing some form of abortion legislation in the very near future. To read more details about the Minister's speech and the current situation, you can view our new briefing document here 
Before the last General Election, Fine Gael gave a strong pro-life commitment.  We must now hold them to that.  Please order postcards free of charge to send to your local Fine Gael Oireachtas members. It is vital that politicians hear from constituents at this time.

You can view a sample of the Postcards here 

Please take one minute to order postcards here

If you are a member of a prayer group, we will be happy to send you a prepared letter designed to read out to prayer groups which clearly explains the current threat.

This is a crucial time. Please order cards now and share this message with as many pro-life people as possible. Thank you for your continued support.

New: PLC Statistics Library

The Pro Life Campaign's research team has been compiling statistics on abortion, maternal mortality and associated matters for some years. Now, we have compiled the data in easily downloadable PDF format and have made it freely available on our website.

If you are interested in viewing abortion statistics for Ireland andcomparative figures for Britain, Europe and beyond, visit our new Statistics Library here >> 

United States: Number of people describing themselves as 'pro-choice' hits an all time low

As the United States comes to grips with revelations that some abortion clinics are promoting sex selective abortions, Gallup, one of the main opinion polling  companies in the US has released a pollshowing the number of Americans supporting abortion has hit an all time low.
41% of Americans now describe themselves as “pro-choice”.  This is a drop of six percentage points over the last twelve months.

This is crucial news in an election year where government support for abortion provider Planned Parenthood is a major issue. The decline in support for abortion was seen across the political divide and it is clear that more and more people are questioning abortion and the negative effects it has on women.

View Gallup poll results here

New CSO data proves Ireland, without abortion far safer for pregnant women

The Central Statistics Office has just released its Report on Vital Statistics for 2009.

Amongst other things the report deals with the level of maternal deaths in Ireland and how the rate here compares with the UK.

For the latest available year (2009), Ireland’s maternal mortality rate is less than half that of England and Wales and half that of Scotland.

Pro-choice advocates often argue that abortion is necessary to safeguard women's lives. However, England and Wales has one of the most liberal abortion regimes in the world and the maternal mortality rate there is more than twice that of women in Ireland.

The figures once again prove the fact that Ireland, without abortion is one of the safest countries in the world for women in pregnancy. Let's keep it that way.

View CSO Report on Vital Statistics here >>