Fewer women get abortions

FEWER Irish women are travelling to Britain for abortions.

For a second consecutive year the British Department of Health has recorded a reduction in the Irish abortion rate.

In 2003, 6,320 Irish women travelled to Britain for abortions, down from 6,522 from the previous year.

It is the first time a reduction has been recorded over two consecutive years. Previously, the trend was upwards.

While the Pro Life Campaign welcomed the reduction, both the Crisis Pregnancy Agency and the Irish Family Planning Association warned that it was too early to tell if it signalled a downward trend.

The figures cannot be relied upon as an exact barometer, because some Irish women may be using English addresses when opting for an abortion.

The Pro Life Campaign is hoping that the downward trend will continue as more resources are put in place towards providing positive alternatives to abortion.

Campaign spokesperson Dr Ruth Cullen said while any reduction was to be welcomed, the figures remained extremely high, leaving no room for complacency. The Pro Life Campaign also said the figure for Irish abortions for 2003 represented just over 10% of the 61,517 live births recorded by the Central Statistics Office last year.

The statistics also show that 181,600 pregnancies were terminated by women in England and Wales last year - up just over 3% on 2002.

Dr Cullen said they reckoned that the abortion rate in England and Wales was roughly three times higher than the rate in Ireland.

Irish Family Planning Association chief executive Niall Behan said they welcomed the “small” reduction in the number of women who travelled to Britain for an abortion.

The association also believes that the figures vindicate the State’s involvement in the Positive Options campaign and efforts to raise awareness about safe sex and contraception.

However, Mr Behan was concerned about recent reports of “back street” abortions.

Crisis Pregnancy Agency chairperson Olive Braiden said part of their mandate was to ensure that a full range of contraceptive services were available and that women with unwanted pregnancies were aware of all their options.