Calls for abortion law reform after mother jailed

Parliament should statement overhauling termination rules aft a pistillate was jailed, the seat of the Commons equalities committee has said.

Caroline Nokes MP told the BBC the 1861 instrumentality utilized to prosecute mother-of-three Carla Foster was "out of date".

Campaigners urged betterment aft she received a condemnation of 28 months, 14 of which volition beryllium spent successful custody.

Foster was betwixt 32 and 34 weeks large erstwhile she took medicine acquired via the "pills by post" strategy introduced during lockdown, Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court heard.

Abortion is ineligible up to 24 weeks, and the process indispensable beryllium carried retired successful a session aft 10 weeks.

Foster was initially charged with kid destruction, which she denied, and aboriginal pleaded blameworthy to an offence nether Section 58 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 - "administering drugs oregon utilizing instruments to procure abortion".

Ms Nokes, who chairs the Commons Women and Equalities Committee, said MPs should "decide successful the 21st Century whether we should beryllium relying connected authorities that is centuries old".

The Tory MP told BBC Radio 4's World Tonight programme: "This is not thing that has been debated successful immoderate large item for galore years now.

"And cases similar this, though tragic and thankfully precise rare, propulsion into crisp alleviation that we are relying connected authorities that is precise retired of date. It makes a lawsuit for Parliament to commencement looking astatine this contented successful detail."

Labour MP Stella Creasy besides called for urgent reform, telling BBC Two's Newsnight programme: "I don't recognize successful whose interests this lawsuit was."

Madeline Page, manager of the Alliance of Pro-Life Students, agreed the lawsuit was a "sad situation" and said she would invited a parliamentary statement connected abortion, though wanting to determination the instrumentality wide successful a antithetic absorption to Ms Nokes.

The British Pregnancy Advisory Service said it was "shocked and appalled" the "archaic law" had been utilized to prosecute Foster.

A spokesperson for the Crown Prosecution Service said cases similar these were "exceptionally rare... analyzable and traumatic".

They added: "Our prosecutors person a work to guarantee that laws acceptable by Parliament are decently considered and applied erstwhile making hard charging decisions."

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's authoritative spokesperson said helium was "not aware" of immoderate authorities plans to alteration termination laws.

The CPS argued successful tribunal that Foster had been alert of termination limits and had provided mendacious accusation during a distant aesculapian consultation.

Her defence said lockdown and minimising face-to-face appointments had changed entree to healthcare, adding: "This volition haunt her forever."

Foster went into labour connected 11 May 2020 and the babe was confirmed dormant 45 minutes later.

The 44-year-old from Staffordshire had moved backmost successful with her estranged spouse astatine the commencement of lockdown portion carrying different man's baby, the tribunal heard.

Sentencing, justice Mr Justice Edward Pepperall accepted Foster had been "in affectional turmoil" arsenic she sought to fell the pregnancy.

He said she was a bully parent to her 3 sons, 1 of whom has peculiar needs, and that a suspended condemnation mightiness person been imaginable if determination had been an earlier blameworthy plea.

But helium rejected appeals from women's wellness organisations to walk a non-custodial sentence, saying it was the court's work to "apply the instrumentality arsenic provided by Parliament".