Church warns Down’s tests could lead to ‘Nazi’ eugenics

‘Disability is not a disaster’

THE Church of England has urged families to ‘welcome and celebrate’ children with Down’s Syndrome as the NHS introduces a new screening programme.

The General Synod backed moves to prevent the tests being used to justify more abortions of babies with Down’s.

The NHS is preparing to launch its Non-Invasive Prenatal Testing for all women deemed at ‘high risk’ of having a Down’s child. The current invasive test carries a 1 per cent chance of miscarriage.

Members of the Synod – the Church’s parliament – voted unanimously to back a motion calling for Down’s babies to be ‘treated with dignity and respect’.

The Church said women who learn their unborn child has Down’s should be given comprehensive and unbiased information on the condition, which affects around one in 1,000 babies, amid fears that families could be steered towards abortion.

Lay churchgoer Andrew Gray told the Synod: ‘The UK and Europe have begun to practice eugenics, by default, and without intent. This is not because of a state-led desire to remove those considered weak or sub-human – we don’t live in 1930s Germany, thank God. But while the reasons and motivations are different, the outcome is the same.’

The Rev Rachel Wilson, a wheelchair user, said: ‘Being born with a disability is not a disaster.’

The Bishop of Carlisle, the Right Rev James Newcombe, added: ‘It is imperative that every step is taken to ensure that [those with Down’s] are welcomed, celebrated and treated with dignity and respect.’