An earlier LifeLine drew attention to the proposal to liberalise the law to allow abortion agencies to be allowed to advertise on television. Why, we might ask, is this objectionable? A devil’s advocate might point out that abortion agencies offer a legal service which is accessed by many people each year. Why should they not be allowed to advertise, just like car companies or detergent manufacturers?
Well, one obvious answer is this: abortion, whatever your opinion of the procedure, is not like other commercially available services. Having an abortion is not like replacing your washing machine or putting a new gearbox in your car. It is ending a human life. Now, many people have differing opinions of the nature and value of that life, but the fact that it is a human life is scientifically unavoidable and should give pause to us all.
It is also far from clear that the new rules will be applied fairly. Evan Harris MP, for example, has said: "What is vital, as the select committee recommended, is that no woman is misled by anti-abortion campaigners claiming to offer balanced advice when they never refer for abortion". Dr Harris is an influential figure with a long-standing hostility to the pro-life movement, and was thought by many to have been responsible for recommendations that, if made into law, would severely curtail the activities of organizations like LIFE (see the recommendations at sections 162-165). What this would mean in practice is that organisations that do not refer for abortion were prevented from advertising: a sinister and outrageous state of affairs.
It is worth noting in any case that no British pro-life organization currently has anywhere near the financial resources to advertise on TV. By contrast, it says a great deal about the resources of the abortion industry that they are ready and willing to run TV adverts in prime-time (when even a few seconds costs tens of thousands of pounds!)
Please combat this proposal for abortion advertising on TV, and point out that if we must have such advertising, then there must be access for all with genuine services to offer.
The consultation on this proposal began on April 1 and will run for 12 weeks.
The address to write to is:
The Advertising Standards Authority,
Mid-City Place,
71 High Holborn,
London
WC1V 6QT