Overview

• Legal abortions accounted for a record 29.7% of all conceptions in 2022, up from 26.5% in 2021.
• There were 247,703 conceptions ending in termination, a 13.1% rise on the previous year, while the DHSC recorded 251,377 procedures, the highest total since 1967 and a 17% increase.
• Home use of both abortion medications under permanent telemedicine measures made in 2022 comprised 61% of all procedures.
• Girls under 16 continued to have the highest termination share at 61.0%, compared with 20.5% for women aged 30–34.
• Campaigners are calling for wider contraception access and a reclassification of emergency pills to help curb unintended pregnancies.