The number of abortions in Greater Manchester grows as US Supreme Court overturns Roe v Wade

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

Rising numbers of abortions took place in Greater Manchester last year, as medical leaders call for protected spaces around clinics to prevent women being harassed by anti-abortion demonstrators.

The figures follow the US Supreme Court decision to overturn millions of women's legal right to abortion in the nation. Last year 13,876 abortions took place Greater Manchester, a 5.5 per cent increase from 13,151 abortions in 2020, and 7.7 per cent higher than the 12,887 abortions during the pre-pandemic year, according to figures from the Department of Health and Social Care.

Last year’s figures include 419 girls in the region who were under the age of 18 when they had an abortion, down from 425 in 2020.

Experts believe the overall increase is partly because of changes to the law, allowing women to have abortions at home. But they say this may also have been coupled with the financial pressures brought by the pandemic and its aftermath, along with rising living costs, meaning money troubles are likely to play a part in decisions to continue a pregnancy. READ MORE : Warning that UK could be on the brink of new Covid wave with virus becoming 'more dangerous' Nationally, lengthy waits for all manner of NHS treatments have also made it harder for women to access contraception - in particular long-acting methods such as the coil or contraceptive implant, as these require face-to-face consultations and a fitting performed by a healthcare professional.