Abortion law in England and Wales has changed following reforms that remove criminal penalties for women who end their own pregnancies. The changes, approved as part of recent legislation, mean women can no longer be prosecuted under historic laws for terminating a pregnancy outside the existing medical framework.
The reform relates to provisions within the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 and the Infant Life (Preservation) Act 1929, which previously allowed for criminal charges, including life imprisonment, in certain circumstances. While the Abortion Act 1967 continues to govern how abortion services are provided, the legal risk for women themselves has now been removed.
