More than 11 million unborn children are estimated to have lost their lives to abortion across the UK as campaigners marked the Abortion Act’s 59th anniversary.
The Act received Royal Assent on 27 October 1967 and came into force six months later, on 27 April 1968.
SPUC puts the cumulative total at 11,256,470. This is a projection using published statistics and assumptions about subsequent abortion rates, rather than a completed official count.
The latest figures for England and Wales record 278,740 abortions in 2023, an increase of 26,618 on 2022 and the highest annual total recorded.
For women resident in England and Wales, 72 per cent of abortions involved taking both abortion drugs at home.
SPUC has repeatedly warned about the loss of unborn lives and the need to support women facing difficult pregnancies.
Michael Robinson, SPUC Executive Director, said: “These figures represent millions of unborn children whose lives have been lost. Instead of accepting abortion on this scale as inevitable, we must build a society that protects every human life and gives women the support they need to choose life.”
The anniversary has prompted renewed calls for stronger protections for unborn children, practical help for mothers, and support for families.
