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A baby boy born before the abortion limit 15 years ago is now raising money for premature babies

A baby boy was born a week before the abortion limit and, fifteen years later, he’s healthy, happy, climbing Ben Nevis, and raising money for other premature babies like him.

Liam Lyttle was born prematurely 15 years ago. He was born when his mum was just over 22 weeks pregnant, weighing just 1lb 6oz.

He had a brain haemorrhage, problems with his heart, eyes and lungs, and had to spend the first four months of his life in hospital.

Liam was treated at University Hospital of North Staffordshire and had to have seven blood transfusions and suffered a brain haemorrhage, which, at one point, doctors thought could lead to cerebral palsy.

A “complete miracle”

Neither his family nor doctors were sure if he would make it, but baby Liam went on to become the family’s “complete miracle”.

His mum, Mandy Bennett, said: “He was born at 22 weeks and six days and weighed 760 grams. He had problems with his heart, lungs, eyes and had a brain haemorrhage. He had physiotherapy and hydrotherapy. He is completely fine now. To go up Ben Nevis from the chance of him surviving before, he is a complete miracle”.

She added: “As a family, we are super proud of him and what he has achieved to date. I never take a single day for granted and will always be his biggest fan”.

He’s raising money for premature babies

And she has plenty to be proud of. At the age of 10, as a Woodville Juniors pupil, he walked up Mount Snowden in Wales, raising £2,001 for Bliss, a charity for sick and premature babies.

He has since climbed Ben Nevis and has been selected to represent the UK at a world Scouting event in South Korea.

Abortion is allowed in the UK under various circumstances up to 24 weeks gestation, and even up to birth if the child has a disability. However, premature babies like Liam are born before the abortion limit and can go on to survive and thrive.

Earlier this year, John Wyatt, Emeritus Professor of Neonatal Paediatrics, Ethics & Perinatology at University College London, presented evidence to parliamentarians from the UK and across the world showing “that there has been a steady improvement in the chances of survival of babies born at 22 and 23 weeks gestation since the Abortion Act was last amended [in 1990]”.

Right To Life UK spokesperson Catherine Robinson said: “The prospects for extremely premature babies are improving all the time. This is yet another story in which babies born before the abortion limit survive. It even happened over 15 years ago, when medical technology was not as advanced as it is now. Our outdated abortion laws urgently need to change. Babies in the womb deserve the protection of the law.”

Dear reader,

You may be surprised to learn that our 24-week abortion time limit is out of line with the majority of European Union countries, where the most common time limit for abortion on demand or on broad social grounds is 12 weeks gestation.

The latest guidance from the British Association of Perinatal Medicine enables doctors to intervene to save premature babies from 22 weeks. The latest research indicates that a significant number of babies born at 22 weeks gestation can survive outside the womb, and this number increases with proactive perinatal care.

This leaves a real contradiction in British law. In one room of a hospital, doctors could be working to save a baby born alive at 23 weeks whilst, in another room of that same hospital, a doctor could perform an abortion that would end the life of a baby at the same age.

The majority of the British population support reducing the time limit. Polling has shown that 70% of British women favour a reduction in the time limit from 24 weeks to 20 weeks or below.

Please click the button below to sign the petition to the Prime Minister, asking him to do everything in his power to reduce the abortion time limit.