What does it say about our society that abortion will now be advertised on TV?

The news that for-profit abortion providers are soon to be allowed to advertise on television suggests there is something very wrong with our society. Abortion may well at times be the least worst option. But even those of us who accept this should feel deeply uncomfortable with it being actively promoted on television. The fact that these providers want to advertise on television is revealing of a certain lack of moral seriousness about the work they do.

This news is also revealing of how far we have come since the Abortion Act 1967. I doubt that the parliamentarians who voted that legislation through envisaged that 45 years later, what are euphemistically called, ‘post-conception advisory services’ would be being promoted during the commercial break. This is something that we as a society should reflect on before we make any move to legalise assisted dying.