Family Planning welcomes early-abortion trend

New Zealand women are having abortions earlier in their pregnancy — a trend which has been welcomed by Family Planning.

In 2017, 59 per cent of abortions in New Zealand were carried out before the 10th week of pregnancy, slightly up from last year and 16 per cent up on a decade ago.

Family Planning chief executive Jackie Edmond said it was a positive trend because it meant women seeking a procedure were being seen earlier and were able to access medical services more quickly.

“Compared to some other countries, our women have been having abortions a lot later. So that is good to see.”

The trend was probably the result Esmonde Rd in Takapuna, for example, will have $47 million spent on them, mostly in 2020. Lincoln Rd in Henderson has $79m allocated to it right now and the work should all be done by 2022.

And while the Government wants to downsize the East-West link from Onehunga to Penrose, AT’s plan says no to $119m for “local road improvements” to support that project.

Spending on roads isn’t just about making the roads bigger or better. “Intelligent transport systems” will be introduced to “manage congestion, improve safety and influence travel demand”. That’s code for technology that could, for example, charge you for driving to the busiest places. AT has allocated $110m, peaking in 2023, but has not approved a further $58m of spending in that area.

Similarly, $180m is allocated to “network performance improvements”. Better phasing of the traffic lights, that sort of thing. But $309m worth of proposals were put on hold.

On the Northern Busway, Rosedale and Constellation Drive will get new stations in 2020-22, as the busway extends to Albany. But while there’s $100m allocated for that, a further $120m of improvements to the existing busway were turned down.

In east Auckland, work on the new Eastern Busway will proceed quickly and spending will peak in 2021-23, with $270m allocated to a new Pakuranga station and Reeves Rd flyover. But a proposed spend of $259m on rapid transit from Botany to the airport has been deferred. of greater availability of medical abortions in this country, Edmond said.

The number of abortions in New Zealand rose slightly to 13.7 per 1000 women in 2017, up from 13.5 per cent the previous year. It was the first increase since 2007.

“We have come down very consistently over the past decade, so we were always due to settle at some point,” Edmond said.

“There will be always be unplanned pregnancies resulting in abortions, so maybe we’ve reached that settling place.”

The rate of teen abortions fell slightly from 9.4 per cent to 9.2 per cent — around 550 in total.

Of those under 16 years of age who had abortions, 32 per cent did not notify their parents.

Conservative lobby group Family First national director Bob McCoskrie — whose organisation wants notification to be compulsory — said that figure was higher than officials’ previous estimates, which ranged between 10 and 25 per cent.

Edmond said there was nothing sinister about young people not telling their parents about the procedure.

Family Planning encouraged pregnant teenagers to talk to their parents or a trusted adult, but sometimes that was not always possible or practical.

“Other places in health people really acknowledge the evolving capacity of young people and the need for them to have a say in their healthcare, and that’s the same in abortion,” Edmond said.

The latest figures were released as the Law Commission investigates the SkyPath and SeaPath, S taking cyclists and walkers over the harbour bridge and on to Takapuna, will be paid for by government and finished by 2021. options for reforming adoption laws in New Zealand.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern campaigned on removing abortion from the Crimes Act, and wants it to be treated primarily as a health issue.

Abortions are permitted in New Zealand only when the prospective mother faces serious physical or mental harm by having the baby and require sign-off from two certifying consultants.

Pro-life groups like Family First say liberalisation of abortion laws will reverse the trend of falling abortion rates in New Zealand.

But that claim does not appear to be backed by evidence. A recent international study showed that countries with the most liberal abortion laws had the lowest abortion rates.