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The Bunker – News without the nonsense

Daily: Why post-COVID abortion rights must stay

The Bunker – News without the nonsense

Podmasters

News, Society & Culture, Politics, Government

4.61K Ratings

🗓️ 8 January 2021

⏱️ 22 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

It took a global pandemic to revolutionise Britain’s outdated abortion provision but the changes need to be made permanent. Quality-controlled termination “pills by post” have been made available during the pandemic– but under current law, GPs still can’t provide abortion medication without clinical advice too. Katherine O’Brien, Associate Director at the British Pregnancy Advisory Service, tells Naomi Smith why we need to expand the “telemedicine” provision, drop the “completely unnecessary” requirement for women who need abortions to attend clinics, and bring abortion law into the 21st century on a permanent basis. Otherwise the most vulnerable women and girls could be forced back in to accessing high risk, unregulated black market pills via the internet.  “It’s 2021 but any woman who obtains an abortion without the advice of two doctors can still face imprisonment under a law from 1861.” “Sadly, it took a global pandemic to modernise a healthcare service that one in three women will require in their lifetime.” “If you believe women should have safe access, you should back these changes.”  Presented by Naomi Smith. Produced by Andrew Harrison. Assistant producers Jelena Sofronijevic and Jacob Archbold. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Audio production by Alex Rees. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

My name is Stan. I'm at. Nice to meet you. So you took up photography where? I've always loved

0:05.5

photography but I turn it into earning a living at 60. I enrolled on a day course.

0:11.8

Well college. I loved going to college. It's good you can retry. I'm enrolled on the day course. But college?

0:13.0

I loved going to college.

0:14.0

It's good you can retrain and do something.

0:16.0

Yeah, yeah.

0:17.0

Let's talk about working, learning, saving and making the most of living longer.

0:22.0

Phoenix Group is the UK's largest long-term savings and retirement business.

0:28.0

Search Phoenix Group living longer.

0:30.0

Pets brings so much joy.

0:32.0

From those happy greetings at the door to the warm cuddles on the sofa

0:36.7

so give a little love back with dental life from Purina a range of delicious chues made for dogs and tasty snacks for cats that help clean and support your pets, teeth and gums, essential for their overall well-being and a happy, healthy life. They give you plenty of smiles so look after

0:55.9

theirs with dental life. Pick up dental life in the pet food aisle. Hello and I'm Nermi Smith and it's a serious one.

1:05.0

Hello and welcome back to my first bunker daily of 2021.

1:12.0

I'm Nermi Smith and it's a serious one so at the

1:15.6

outset I should say that today's show covers issues of pregnancy and abortion.

1:20.7

I vividly remember hearing my grandmother's tales of having to seek

1:24.4

backstreet abortions during the war, horrendous tales of being a woman with very

1:29.1

little money, three children already, alone and pregnant again while her husband was away with the army.

1:35.2

And half a century later, I spent my teenage years in Northern Ireland, where abortion was

1:40.2

until last year effectively illegal, and I knew women and girls who had to make

1:44.6

dangerous journeys to England to seek a termination. The law is still far from

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