Mumsnet is pledging to match-fund support from donors to support a charity that helps women to obtain illegal abortions. The popular parenting site listed The Abortion Support Network (ASN) among the five charities they are raising funds for during their second annual giving week.
ASN sponsors women’s travel from Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland (where abortions are illegal except in rare circumstances) so that they can obtain abortions in England.
ASN also helps women by signposting them to two organisation where they may obtain abortion pills by post. This practice is entirely illegal in Ireland (north and south), as well as in the rest of the UK, unless approved by two doctors.
Peter Saunders, chief executive of Christian Medical Fellowship says: “Abortions carried out outside the bounds of the Abortion Act are criminal acts according to the Offences against the Person Act and for both the woman and the supplier carry a custodial sentence.
“If ASN are indeed giving advice about supplying illegal abortion drugs by post, as the Mumsnet just giving page reports, then the police must uphold the law by fully investigating and reporting their findings to the Crown Prosecution Service.”
He adds: “By actively promoting and supporting this activity Mumsnet is also potentially colluding in a criminal act.
“This is a serious matter for the police, the charity commission and the Crown Prosecution Service.”
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