UK: Bill on babies born alive after an abortion receives First Reading in House of Lords

Baroness O’Loan’s Infant (Born Alive) Protection Bill received its First Reading last Thursday June 11th after being drawn at number seventeen in the House of Lords Private Members’ Bill ballot.

The Bill’s full title is “A Bill to require that an infant born alive after an attempted termination of pregnancy receives appropriate medical treatment and care; to make provision about enforcement of that requirement; and for connected purposes.”

At the time of writing, on June 16th, the Bill is receiving a 2nd reading.

This is the second pro-life Bill to be introduced to the House of Lords in recent weeks. Last Tuesday on June 9th, Lord Moylan’s Complications from Abortions (Annual Report) Bill received its First Reading in the House of Lords, having been drawn in fourteenth place in the House of Lords’ Private Members’ Bill ballot.

​Babies born alive after an abortion is attempted

Baroness O’Loan’s Infant (Born Alive) Protection Bill aims to ensure that the law is clear regarding the protections due to babies born alive following an attempted abortion. This comes following the change in British law during the last Parliament, making it no longer illegal for women to perform their own abortions for any reason, at any point up to and including birth (including abortions for sex-selective reasons).

The change to the law introduced earlier this year through the Crime and Policing Act 2026 will likely lead to a significant increase in the number of women in the country performing dangerous late-term abortions at home, endangering the lives of many more women. 

It may also likely lead to an increased number of viable babies’ lives being ended well beyond the 24-week abortion time limit.

Tonia Antoniazzi MP, who brought forward this law change, saidsaid in an interview that she was comfortable with women being able to abort a viable baby at 37 weeks.

91% of 28,000 respondents to a poll run by The Telegraph said they were opposed to the extreme law change that was subsequently made.

Source & thumbnail credit: https://righttolife.org.uk/news/bill-on-babies-born-alive-after-an-abortion-receives-first-reading-in-house-of-lords

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Comment: Here in Ireland, the HSE still has no guidelines for when babies survive abortions, despite the horrific reality of the issue being made public in a paper on abortion provision in Ireland published in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology by researchers at UCC. 

This is the case in Ireland despite the fact that in February of this year it was revealed that 108 babies have been born alive following abortion in Ireland between 2019-2023. Of that number, 29 babies survived an abortion in 2023 alone.

This is the stuff of nightmares. It demonstrates a cruel and indifferent attitude towards everyone concerned — first and foremost, the innocent unborn child, as shown by our disgraceful and shameful abortion rate of over 60,000 babies killed in the womb since Repeal, and 108 babies born alive after abortion attempts.

Secondly, the mother, who was let down in the worst possible way — led to believe her own child was the issue instead of being offered help and support so she could love her baby for every day, however short the life. 

Lastly, the media and government continue to ignore a 2020 report that found Irish doctors were left begging for help when babies survived abortions. 

This is an abject disaster. It seems our government can’t help but miserably fail everyone involved.