TAKE ACTION: Midwife Union Chief supports access to abortion up to birth for any reason

Over the weekend the Chief Executive of the Royal College of Midwives (RCM), Cathy Warwick, has come in for intense criticism over the pledged support of the RCM for a campaign advocating the decriminalisation of abortion in Britain. Extraordinarily, despite her position as Chief of Britain’s biggest maternity union, it has become apparent that Cathy Warwick is also a trustee of BPAS – the UK’s largest abortion provider – and has even Chaired the Board of Trustees since 2014.

This news has come in the wake of the endorsement by the RCM of a campaign to allow abortion up to birth in Britain for any reason. Regular Impact Direct readers may remember that we wrote about the launch of the innocuous sounding ‘We Trust Women’ campaign in February this year.

A few days ago a formal statement of the RCM’s radical position on abortion was uploaded to its website but, crucially, both the decision to issue this statement and the decision to endorse the campaign to decriminalise abortion were taken without any kind of consultation of RCM members whatsoever.

Public concern has been growing rapidly in the last 48 hours in the context of which around 200 Midwives have signed a letter saying that the policy is ‘utterly unacceptable’ and there has been extensive media coverage (see below).

A petition has been launched by the NOT IN OUR NAME campaign calling on the RCM to reconsider its position. Incredibly, after less than 48hrs more than 11,000 people have added their name!

Please add your voice to the thousands who have already spoken up and take action now by visiting the NOT IN OUR NAME website – if you are a midwife there is also an opportunity for you to sign a separate letter.

To keep up to speed with developments in the campaign, like the NOT IN OUR NAME facebook page here and follow the campaign on twitter here.

You can read an article written by CARE’s Chief Executive, Nola Leach, on the disturbing nature of the RCM’s changed position on abortion by clicking here.

For more information, check out some of the weekend’s press coverage below, but please sign the NOT IN OUR NAME petition and share the petition with your friends before you do so!

News Coverage

End the time limit for abortions, says midwives chief: horror at plan to scrap 24-week cut-off and legalise all terminations up until birth – Daily Mail
Midwives should support mothers, not take a stand on abortion – Telegraph
Midwives’ mutiny after union signs up to abortion campaign – The Week
Midwives are meant to save unborn lives not destroy them – Conservative Woman
Royal College of Midwives backs abolition of abortion law that could see women terminate unborn child at any point – Telegraph
Abortion time-limit should be scrapped, Royal College of Midwives’ Chief says, sparking outrage – Huffington Post
Britain’s biggest maternity union pushes controversial campaign to scrap 24 week cut off and legalise abortions up until birth – Daily Record
Midwives revolt over abortion: fury as their feminist union chief backs bid to axe any time limit on terminations – Daily Mail

_Source:_{www.care.org.uk}