"We need to deepen women's rights": 22 women on why they’re supporting our campaign to decriminalise abortion

"I’m supporting Cosmopolitan UK's End 1861 campaign with BPAS because abortion is healthcare – not a crime. Most people don’t know that abortion is still criminalised in England and Wales under a Victorian law, and right now, women are being investigated and even prosecuted for ending their own pregnancies. With MPs voting to decriminalise abortion in June, now is the time to speak up."

"Abortion is a human right. It is healthcare. It is a fundamental need. You cannot tell us we are equal and take away our right to bodily autonomy - as we have watched in the US. It’s never felt more important to protect our access to safe and legal abortions at home.

Not only is it about choice, it is about life and death. It is about aligning aspirations, circumstance. It is about the how and why and when. It shouldn’t be a criminal offence that women face up to life imprisonment for.”

"BPAS are proud to stand together with Cosmopolitan UK at this historic moment for women’s rights. This is our chance to make our voices heard, to bring our Victorian abortion law into the twenty-first century, and to protect women and girls from the threat of police and prosecution.

We urge everyone who supports a woman’s right to choose to contact their MP and join this vital campaign."

"If you ask the average person on the street in the UK if abortion is legal in this country, they will probably say yes. If they are more informed - they might say, "yes, but only up to a certain number of weeks".

And they are not wrong, but what most people don't know is that abortion is only legal in this country if certain conditions are met.

I'm passionate about supporting BPAS and Cosmopolitan UK's campaign to End 1861, because we are living through an unprecedented time where the rights and freedoms of women and people of marginalised genders are being revoked around the world and are facing pressing challenges globally.

If we do not act to strengthen our laws and our freedoms to choose, I worry the ripples of the Dobbs ruling in the USA and overturning of Roe Vs Wade will start to influence UK politics. Abortion is a vital part of healthcare, and it needed to be decriminalised yesterday."

"Abortion care is a vital component of healthcare - it requires adequate funding, legal protection, and an empathetic person-centred approach. The rise in anti-choice movements is not surprising, but deeply concerning, and it's something we all need to organise against.

The 1861 law is so wildly outdated it's almost comical, yet its existence provides a justification to punish, shame, and criminalise women and pregnant people who are at their most vulnerable. Ending 1861 is a no-brainer."

"I’ve spent many years campaigning on women’s issues, and I was shocked, though not surprised, to learn that the laws governing our bodies haven’t been updated since the Victorian era, before we even had the right to vote.

I have always, and will always, defend the right to safe, legal abortion, because our laws should protect women, not punish them. Despite the exemptions introduced in 1967, women in England and Wales are still being dragged through the courts for ending pregnancies, including after miscarriage or while fleeing abuse. As someone who has experienced a miscarriage, one of the most traumatising experiences of my life, I cannot fathom facing criminal proceedings on top of that grief.

With nearly 100 women investigated in recent years, this isn’t hypothetical, it’s happening now. And with the global rise of right-wing politics and the rollback of reproductive rights in countries like the US, we must act. Abortion is healthcare. It’s time to decriminalise it and finally bring our laws into the 21st century."

"I had an abortion in my 20s. It was a miserable experience for me, but at least I didn’t have to worry about a criminal record on top of it. It horrifies me to think of women being forced to choose between continuing with a pregnancy they don’t want, and facing criminal proceedings.

Across the world, we are seeing women’s bodily autonomy come under attack. The overturning of Roe v Wade in the US is a terrifying reminder that our hard-fought rights to restore control over our own bodies is never guaranteed.

Abortion should not be governed by criminal law – it should be removed from the 1861 Offences Against the Person Act and instead governed by the same robust regulatory and ethical frameworks as all other medical procedures."

"I had an abortion late last year, just after Trump was elected and the crackdown on abortion access across America was intensifying. Based in the UK, I was able to get the care I needed immediately, but I was acutely aware of how many women across the US, and indeed the world, were being denied this same, vital care.

When a woman doesn’t have control over her body, she is not free. When a woman doesn’t have control over her reproductive choices, she is not free. Abortion access is the most fundamental tenet of a woman’s bodily autonomy and successive attempts over the years to limit our access to reproductive healthcare is only ever about one thing: control over our bodies.

Regressive policymaking across the US and Europe is a warning sign to us all regarding how easily our rights can be eroded. I’m supporting this campaign because I believe we need to be doubling down on our efforts to protect every woman’s right to an abortion here in the UK and when MPs vote in June as to whether abortion should be decriminalised the answer should be a resounding YES."

"When women who suffer unexplained pregnancy losses are vulnerable to criminal investigations, it can stop them from seeking urgent medical attention. I see this in the hospital I work in, as well as healthcare professionals who are placed under unacceptable and unwarranted scrutiny by police investigations.

All we are asking is that women are not criminally investigated – abortion will still be subject to regulatory and professional standards. Restricting abortion increases inequalities in access to it, nurtures an environment of fear, increases stigmatisation and puts pregnant women at unnecessary risk.

We currently have the crime and policing bill making its way through Parliament, so we have the opportunity to work with MPs to reform abortion law. There are many medical professionals backing this change, but from my experience, the greatest voice – the voice that is listened to in Parliament – is the voice of the people. Now is the time."

"Women’s bodies are a battlefield for far-right politics. Anyone who’s complacent about women’s rights – and who thinks, ‘Oh, what’s happened in the US could never happen here,’ sadly doesn’t understand what’s going on.

It’s not that anti-choice voices will come straight for abortion access per se, but they’re chipping away at the edges of it. We need to deepen women’s rights here and come at it from a human rights perspective.

Anti-abortion groups in the UK are co-ordinating with American campaigners and using ferocious tactics. When we talk about changing the law, you now suddenly get people saying, ‘Oh, you want abortion up until birth'.

The reality is no one is talking about moving the time limit in the UK, but what we are doing is trying to protect a woman’s right to access an abortion and calling for better services as a result.

We don’t often get the opportunity to make social progress in this country. We have to be vigilant, and we have to get ahead on this. Because who knows what could happen in the future?"

"I'm backing Cosmopolitan UK's campaign to End 1861 because I think it is simply indefensible that reproductive rights in 2025 are still governed by a Victorian law, passed before women even had the right to vote.

As scary as it is to admit, reproductive rights are currently being threatened in a way that feels alarmingly regressive, so if there's anything that I can do to stop that from happening, then I will.

I think people find it easy to forget that reproductive rights are just human rights; they always have been and they always will be. I don't care how repetitive it gets, put simply: abortion is healthcare."

"Women who need life-saving care are bleeding out in hospitals in the US because doctors are in danger of being treated as criminals if they terminate a pregnancy at ‘the wrong moment’. There are some American Christian nationalists who want the UK to go the same way. We say no to going down the road to Gilead.

I’m supporting Cosmopolitan UK's End 1861 campaign in collaboration with BPAS because I believe abortion is healthcare – not a crime, I want to protect the UK’s right to access it, and because no woman should face up to life imprisonment for ending her own pregnancy.

Abortion providers in the UK report that they have received nearly a hundred demands from the police for women’s confidential medical records to pursue them for alleged abortion offences – including women experiencing domestic abuse, human trafficking, girls under the age of 18, and women who have experienced unexpected premature labour at home. We must stop this now."

"Abortion is healthcare and should be regulated by medical best practice and clinical evidence, not criminalised based on laws from two centuries ago.

Not only has gender equality changed since 1861, but medical care itself is also very different. Abortion can be managed at home with pills, we have painkillers, we have antibiotics and we have the National Health Service.

Decriminalisation doesn’t mean deregulation. It’s very important to understand that if we reform the law, domestic abusers would still face penalties [for coercing someone into having an abortion or for threatening them in other ways should they seek a termination]. They would also have less power. We hear of stories where abusers wield the law over women, threatening to have them investigated or separated from their children.

If women can come to a regulated abortion provider without fear of prosecution, we can make sure they’re given the support they need to be safe."

"I'm supporting Cosmopolitan UK's campaign because access to safe and legal abortions shouldn't be debatable. It's simple: our reproductive rights should not be subject to archaic patriarchal legislation."

"As someone who believes in God, I find it sad that anti-abortion groups, which more often than not are church-funded and have religious affiliations, have misdirected their attention on trying to close down clinics and harass women.

There are so many other ways they could ‘support life’, such as by helping to raise money for miscarriage services. Or why don’t they fight austerity, which has contributed to a growing number of women in the UK seeking an abortion?

I also believe that God is compassionate and that They created abortion as a form of healthcare. I know God loves people who have had abortions. I still could not have an abortion. But my personal decisions, and beliefs, shouldn’t dictate what another person can – or cannot – do with their body.

Through my work, I’ve also learned that often people are so grateful to have access to abortion services in the UK that there’s a lack of focus on trying to improve the care on offer. Decriminalising abortion without interrogating how services are going to work would just be performative. There's lots we need to overhaul, as well as the law."

"The two biggest safeguarding concerns we see in our clinics are mental health issues and domestic abuse. Technology-facilitated abuse is also adding an extra layer of complexity to safeguarding. These women are in incredibly vulnerable situations, just trying to survive, day-to-day.

Decriminalising abortion means they can access safe, regulated services without fear of prosecution. This is crucial because a regulated provider can be a lifeline for anyone with concerns about their safety, offering compassionate care and support.

This change doesn’t mean deregulation; women will still receive comprehensive, high-quality care. It means treating women with the empathy and respect they deserve, rather than subjecting them to the fear of a life sentence."

"In recent years, we have seen some shocking cases of women being criminalised, and even imprisoned, for procuring abortions. The criminal justice system should not be punishing women for decisions they are making about their own bodies.

Abortion should be treated as healthcare and regulated as such, not as a matter for the police and courts. We therefore need to change the law to decriminalise abortion."

"It’s 2025, yet people who have a uterus in the UK are still being criminalised for making decisions about their own bodies. This is dangerous and outdated. Abortion is healthcare, and is necessary in order to save lives, full stop.

"No one should live in fear of prosecution for seeking care. The fact that this is still a reality for some, especially the most vulnerable, is a disgrace. I’m backing End 1861 because this law belongs in the past. Having the freedom to choose what we want for ourselves and our bodies, is a human right."