Charity accused of 'exploiting' controversy over abortion

The British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) was accused of “cynically exploiting” the controversy surrounding the debate on abortion with the new marketing drive.

Around £50,000 is being spent on the “No More Names” campaign, which has been established to push home the message that women are best placed to decide whether to continue with a pregnancy.

Charity leaders said it was necessary following "recent comments by ministers" and a series of protests outside abortion clinics.

It comes just a week after Jeremy Hunt, the Health Secretary, said the legal time limit on abortion should be halved to 12 weeks.

Earlier this month, Maria Miller, the Minister for Women and Equalities, said she stood by her decision to vote for a 20-week limit in 2008.

Theresa May, the Home Secretary, also waded into the argument, saying she believed the time limit should decrease.

The BPAS campaign, which will be featured on billboards around the country, features a picture of three women and the words: "What do you call a woman who has had an abortion? Mother. Daughter. Sister. Friend."

The charity, which has an annual income of around £25 million, currently receives most of its money from the taxpayer through its services for the NHS. It provides 55,000 abortions a year and 93 per cent of its work is carried out on behalf of the health service.

But a spokeswoman insisted that cash for the latest campaign had come through private sources and donations from members of the public angered by comments made by Mr Hunt and other MPs.

However, the move raised questions that the charity was straying into overtly political territory and prompted calls for its NHS funding to be curbed.

Anthony Ozimic, communications manager of the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children, said: "BPAS, which is a lucrative abortion enterprise, is cynically exploiting the hype over the upper-limit debate to drum up more clients.

“BPAS knows very well that there is no realistic prospect of new abortion limits getting past Parliament's large pro-abortion majority.

“Instead of pursuing the red herring of time-limits, ministers should instead cut off the tens of millions of pounds the government hands to BPAS in NHS contracts."

But Ann Furedi, BPAS chief executive, said: "Unwanted pregnancy affects women of all ages, in all sorts of circumstances.

"There are many reasons why a woman may find herself with an unintended pregnancy, from contraceptive failure to misconceptions about her own fertility, and many sad cases where a much wanted pregnancy can no longer be carried to term.

"Women need to be able to make these decisions without banners being waved in their faces, or being made to feel that they are thoughtless, immoral or selfish.

"Politicians should understand that women themselves are the ones who are best placed to make the choice that is right for them and their families."