COMPARATIVE ABORTION RATES SCOTLAND, NORTHERN IRELAND, ENGLAND AND WALES, REPUBLIC OF IRELAND

Scotland Northern Ireland England & Wales Republic of Ireland

Year Births Abortions (%) Births Abortions (%) Births Abortions (% Births Abortions (%)
1969 90,300 3,532 (3.9%) 32,428 96 (0.3%) 797,538 49,829 (6.2%) 62,912 122 (0.2%)
1978 68,400 8,392 (12.3%) 26,239 1,301 (5.0%) 596,418 112,056 (18.8%) 69,844 2,533 (3.6%)
1988 66,200 10,963 (16.6%) 27,767 1,815 (6.5%) 693,600 166,184 (24.0%) 54,283 3,838 (7.1%)
1997 59,400 12,409 (20.9%) 24,269 1,568 (6.5%) 643,095 167,813 (26.1%) 52,311 5,325 (10.2%)
1998 57,300 12,835 (22.4%) 23,851 1,581 (6.6%) 635,901 177,871 (28.0%) 53,551 5,891 (11.0%)
1999 55,100 12,487 (22.6%) 22,957 1,430 (6.2%) 621,872 173,696 (27.9%) 53,354 6,226 (11.6%)
2000 53,076 12,324 (23.2%) 21,549 1,528 (7.1%) 604,441 175,542 (29.0%) 54,239 6,391 (11.8%)
2001 52,500 12,451 (23.6%) 21,962 1,577 (7.2%) 594,634 176,364 (29.7%) 57,882 6,673 (11.5%)
2002 51,270 12,173 (23.3%) 21,385 1,391 (6.5%) 596,122 175,900 (29.5%) 60,521 6,522 (10.8%)
2003 52,400 12,.631 (24.3%) 21,648 1,318 (6.1%) 621,469 181,582 (29.2%) 61,517 6,320 (10.3%)
2004 54,000 12,763 (23.6% ) 22,318 1,280 ( 5.7%) 639,721 185,713 (29.0%) 61,684 6,217 (10.1%)
2005 54,400 12,853 (23.6%) 22,328 1,164 (5.2%) 645,800 186,416 (28.9%) 61,042 5,585 (9.2%)
2006 55,700 13,443 (24.1%) 23,272 1,295 (5.6%) 669,600 193,737 (28..9%) 64,237 5,042 (7.9%)
2007 57,781 14,080 (24.4%) 24,451 1,343 (5.5%) 690,000 198,499 (28.8%) 70,620 4,686 (6.6%)
2008 60,041 14,114 (23.5%) 25,600 1,173 (4.6%) 708,708 195,296 (27.6%) 75,065 4,600 (6.13%)
2009 59,000 14,093 (23.9%) 24,900 1,123 (4.5%) 700,200 189,100 (27.0%) 74,278 4,422 (5.95%)

Note : Additional abortions on Scottish residents performed in England and Wales, are included in above figures. It is generally about 300-400 per annum. It
was 276 in 2009. Figures for N. Ireland exclude abortions carried out in NI.

Source : Population Trends Winter 2008 by ONS, Abortion Statistics Series AB Nos. 1-28 by ONS, CSO Dublin, LSD Abortion Statistics Scotland 2000-
2006 Statistical Bulletin – Abortion Statistics, England & Wales British Department of Health: 2002,-2008., Registrar General’s Annual Report on
Northern Ireland 2007