- Conference
- 2023 National Delegate Conference
- Date
- 21 February 2023
- Decision
- Carried
Conference asserts that the overturning of Roe v. Wade by the US Supreme Court is the biggest attack on abortion rights since the 1970s. There are many US states ready to bring in bans following this ruling. These bans will not stop abortions. But they will stop safe abortions, and they will make it a crime to assist someone to have an abortion. This means thousands of working class people, mainly women, face an unwanted pregnancy, an unsafe procedure, a jail sentence. Rich people will be okay, they can afford to travel to states or countries without bans, or to check in to a private clinic.
We cannot be complacent: our right to choose and access to abortion has repeatedly come under attack, and the Supreme Court decision will give confidence to those wanting to attack abortion rights. Nadine Dorries used the publicity around the Tory leadership battle in 2022 to call for reducing the time limit for abortion. Working class people and the trade union movement have come together before to fight for our right to choose. The TUC called the biggest ever protest to defend abortion rights against the Corrie Bill in 1979, mobilising 80,000 people onto the streets. This made a huge difference to the campaign, and to women in the workplace.
Conference calls on the National Executive Council to:
1)Encourage branches to affiliate to Abortion Rights UK;
2)Campaign for decriminalisation of abortion in England, Scotland and Wales and for fair access.
