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Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill [HL]

moved Amendment No. 163: 163: Before Clause 59, insert the following new Clause— ““Amendment of law relating to late abortion (1) In subsection (1) of section 1 of the Abortion Act 1967 (c. 87), paragaph (d) is repealed. (2) In subsection (2) of section 5 of that Act, paragraph (a) is repealed.”” The noble Baroness said: My Lords, in moving the amendment, which amends the law on late abortions, I will first explain, in case some of your Lordships are not aware, that a baby who may have a disability can go full term and then be killed and removed from its mother. The legal time for abortion is 24 weeks, but there is no time limit for handicapped babies. This is discrimination of the worst sort. I personally find discussing abortion very difficult, as it would not happen in an ideal world. However, we are discussing the law of the land, which allows abortion up to 24 weeks—six months—which means that the baby is well developed. How can it be, in this modern world of advanced technology, that babies are allowed to go full term and then be given a lethal injection and killed just because they are still inside the womb and may have a handicap? The amendment would stop this unfair discrimination. It has become known as ““the equality amendment””. So much has been talked about the welfare of the child. I must try to persuade some of your Lordships that the welfare of the living baby within the mother’s womb should also be considered and protected. There have been many advances in medical procedures. An example is a remarkable operation in the USA to correct a baby of 21 weeks with spina bifida while still in the mother’s womb, which shows how wonderful a surgeon’s skill can be. I ask the Minister whether this operation is undertaken in the UK. Is how much a baby can feel before it is born known? So many babies are being aborted who are thought to be severely disabled but turn out not to be; I know that some of your Lordships know of some such individual cases. In Committee, it was the wish of many of your Lordships that there should be a Select Committee to undertake a comprehensive review of the abortion law, proposed by my noble friends Lady Finlay of Llandaff and Lord Alton of Liverpool, and the noble Lord, Lord Steel. Sadly, the Liaison Committee turned it down. The provision allowing a baby to go full term and then be killed because of a disability became legal as a result of an amendment to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990, amending the 1967 Act. This was before disability discrimination legislation. I want the noble Baroness, Lady Wilkins, to take note of this issue. We should consider how serious and important this legislation is to help and protect people who have a disability. My noble friend Lady Campbell of Surbiton unfortunately cannot be with us today because she has a chest infection. In Committee, she said: "““My view and that of the Royal Association for Disability and Rehabilitation, as press-released last week, is that whatever the time limit set, it should be equal, irrespective of whether the woman gives birth to a disabled child””.—[Official Report, 12/12/07; col. 307.]" Many people, including a law don from Cambridge, have written to me to say how deeply insulting and offensive Section 5(1)(1)(d) is to every single member of the human race who has been born with some physical or mental disability that other people would regard as serious—whatever that may mean—since it proclaims that such people are not worth caring for, should not be treasured and should not be protected from those who wish to kill them off, provided only that the killing is done before they are born alive. I know some splendid people who were born with spina bifida and cleft pallets. Had this legislation been in force at the time they were in their mother’s womb, they might not be here today. What about such brilliant artists as Beethoven and Toulouse Lautrec? They would not be here. We would not appreciate their wonderful art and music. I beg to move.