A record number of women in England and Wales had an abortion last year, and numbers rose particularly sharply among women aged 30 and over.
A total of 207,384 procedures were carried out, official figures show, the highest number in a year since the historic vote in 1967 to legalise abortion in Britain through the Abortion Act.
Pro-choice charities said the trend towards older motherhood, financial problems facing some women and difficulties getting contraception were all factors behind the increase. Anti-abortion groups declared the figures “a national tragedy”.
Between 2012 and 2016 the annual number of abortions was around 185,000, but since then it has risen each year.
Last year there were 18 abortions per 1,000 women aged 15 to 44. London had the highest rate (21.4 per 1,000) and the south-west the lowest (14.8).
The proportion of women undergoing the procedure for whom it was at least their second abortion rose to 40%, compared with 34% in 2009. Among those aged 30 and over, almost half (49%) had had at least one previous termination.
The rate is going up among all women aged 25 or over, and particularly among the over-30s. Among women aged 30 to 34 it rose to 20.9 per 1,000 last year, compared with 15.7 in 2009, the biggest jump of any age group. Among those over 35 it rose to 9.7 per 1,000, from 6.6 a decade earlier.
But fewer teenagers are undergoing a termination. The rate among under-18s has fallen over the last 10 years and is now 8.1 per 1,000, and among under-16s the rate has dropped to 1.4 per 1,000, compared with 4 in 2009.
Almost all (98%) abortions occurred because doctors decided that continuing with the pregnancy “would involve risk greater than if the pregnancy were terminated, of injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman”. In almost all cases mental health was the reason.
More than half (55%) of all women having a termination had already had at least one child. Among over-35s, 87% were mothers.
Clare Murphy, the director of external affairs at the British Pregnancy Advisory Service, said: “The reasons for this increase will be complex but women and their partners, when faced with an unplanned pregnancy, will make decisions based on the circumstances they find themselves in, and financial instability or uncertainty can often play a key role in those choices.”
She linked the record total to the recent shift towards smaller families – the average has fallen to 1.89 children – and women starting a family later than before, often in order to pursue careers.
Jonathan Lord, the medical director of Marie Stopes UK, another abortion provider, said: “The contraceptive needs of women in their 20s, 30s and 40s, including those who already have children, have been sadly neglected. Lack of investment in contraceptive services has led to poor access and unacceptable waits, particularly for the most effective long-acting methods, such as the implant and coil.”
Antonia Tully, the director of campaigns at the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children, said: “We are looking at a national tragedy here. This appalling figure shows us that abortion is becoming more and more normalised. Propaganda telling women that abortion is ‘simple and safe’, coupled with easier access to abortion pills, is driving up abortion numbers.”
