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Abortion debate - Health Minister accused of imposing personal beliefs

Mid Bedfordshire MP Nadine Dorries has accused Health Minister, Anna Soubry, of imposing her own personal beliefs on Government policy. The accusation came after the Government decided to ditch proposals to ban abortion clinics from offering advice to women seeking terminations:

This is quite bizarre. What Anna Soubry has said today doesn't improve services for women...The Government has decided that it is not the right decision, and what makes it even more bizarre is that the British medical Association voted to support the consultation."

– Nadine Dorries MP, Mid Bedfordshire, Con

Pro-life campaigners like Ms Dorries, have argued that there is a conflict of interest with clinics run by Marie Stopes and the British Pregnancy Advisory Service offering advice as many women go on to have abortions.

Ms Dorries wants women to have to take advice from counselling services seperate to the clinics. While Ms Soubry agreed that counselling was patchy throughout the NHS, as the Government doesn't intend to change the law the consultation was unnecessary.

...if a woman is going to have a termination, she does it as quickly and as soon as possible and that was the unanimous agreement of the committee and I welcome that."

– Anna Soubry MP, Health Minister