Women in England and Wales are having more abortions than ever before. The abortion rate for the two countries rose 3.9 percent in 2006, up from a 0.4 percent increase in 2005. This unwelcome news is telling evidence of a terrible crisis hitting the young people of England and Wales.

The Department of Health reports there were 193,737 abortions in England and Wales last year, with 19-year-old girls the most likely to have the operation. The highest rate of abortions had previously been among 20- to 24-year-olds. One in three women who terminated their unborn child in 2006 had at least one abortion previously. Abortion rates also increased over the previous year for girls under 16 and girls under 18.

Britain is known as the abortion capital of Europe; its laws are more liberal than those of France, Germany, Sweden or Norway, allowing for unborn children up to 24 weeks old to be terminated. Despite the nation’s liberal reputation on abortion, even many in England and Wales who are not exactly pro-life advocates are troubled by the statistics for 2006.

Shadow Health Secretary Andrew Lansley said, “These are disappointing figures, especially on repeat abortions, which further illustrates the failure of the government’s strategies on sexual health and teenage pregnancy.” Lansley was referring in part to a massive £40 million (us$80 million) campaign aimed at increasing contraception education and reducing unintended pregnancy rates. The initiative appears to have had no effect on British abortion rates.

Despite the skyrocketing abortion rate, the British Parliament last week voted down the third proposal in nine months by pro-life supporters to increase abortion restrictions. Next week, the British Medical Association debates proposals to ease restrictions even further.

The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists called the government’s efforts a “failure to address the problem of unplanned pregnancy, particularly in teenagers and young women,” and said it was time to “rethink” Britain’s approach to sex education. Even former MP David Steel, the man who introduced the Abortion Act of 1967, called these latest statistics a “very unwelcome trend” and the amount of repeat abortions “extraordinary.”

These statistics are much more than a “very unwelcome trend”; they are one more telling sign that a serious crisis besieges Western teenagers (and society in general), and that parents and governments are void of solutions. Raising children and teenagers to become mature, responsible adults is nearly a lost art. For an in-depth look and a logical, biblical perspective on abortion, be sure to read “Is Abortion Really Murder?”