The 1967 Abortion Act (amended under the Human Embryology Act of 1991) allows a woman to have an abortion if two doctors agree that continuing the pregnancy would damage either her physical or mental health, or the health of her children, or that the fetus has serious abnormalities.

Abortion is limited to the first 24 weeks except where the woman's life is threatened or the fetus is seriously abnormal.

Doctors vary in their interpretation of the law, so the ease with which a woman can have an aboriton on the NHS depends on where she lives rather than her circumstances.

Unsympathetic doctors may cause undue delay and unnecessary upset to the woman, who may then have to seek private care, away from her home area and at a cost she can ill afford. In 2003, 20% of women still paid for abortion care in England and Wales.