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Actress speaks out after new Down’s syndrome screening test reduces number of births of those with the condition

British actress Sally Phillips has spoken out against prenatal screenings for Down’s syndrome, as figures published last week revealed they lead to more abortions for unborn children with the condition.

The popular actress recalled to The Sunday Times how she received a deluge of almost entirely negative reactions when her son Olly was diagnosed with Down’s syndrome.

Phillips said the moment Olly’s condition was diagnosed, 10 days after his birth, “the doctor said, ‘I’m sorry’ and the midwife cried.”

In 2016, Theresa May’s Conservative government pledged to roll out non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) nationally from 2018, but this is yet to happen.

In England & Wales, government statistics show that where Down’s syndrome has been discovered in the womb over 90% of women choose to abort the child.

Sally said: “It is a sad indictment of society that the things people with Down’s syndrome offer are not valued and are thrown away so easily”.

Figures published last week show that the number of babies born with the condition has dropped by 30% in NHS hospital trusts that offer new non-invasive prenatal tests.

Sally said: “If we were screening for sexuality or race, there would be an enormous outcry.” 

She added that fewer people being born with the condition would mean “less incentive to invest in education, improved healthcare, job opportunities and the specific kind of support that those with Down’s syndrome need”.

Catherine Robinson, spokesperson for Right To Life UK said:

“Our current law allows babies with Down’s syndrome to be aborted right through to birth. Already 90% of babies diagnosed in the womb with Down’s syndrome are aborted in England & Wales. The figures released this week show that new non-invasive prenatal tests are likely to lead to even more babies who have Down’s syndrome being aborted. 

The Government should not be rolling out these tests if there is evidence that they are leading to more babies with Down’s syndrome being aborted. Now there is clear evidence that this is the case, it’s time that the Government pulled the rollout.”

Dear reader,

Despite the Leadbeater assisted-suicide Bill passing its Third Reading on 20 June, it scraped through by just 23 votes (314-291) after enjoying a 55-vote majority at Second Reading. Had 12 more MPs switched sides, the Bill would be dead. It now limps into the Lords with a wafer-thin majority, where peers can amend, delay or reject it outright.

THE CHALLENGE

Dignity in Dying, My Death My Decision and Humanists UK have poured millions into pushing assisted suicide and will fight hard to stop the Lords overturning the Bill.

At the same time, the Antoniazzi abortion-up-to-birth amendment, passed by MPs in June, also heads to the Lords. If it becomes law, it would no longer be illegal for women to perform their own abortions for any reason – including sex-selective purposes – and at any point up to and during birth.

We will be up against the UK’s largest abortion providers, BPAS and MSI Reproductive Choices (formerly Marie Stopes), who are expected to push for even more extreme changes to our abortion laws in the Lords.

WE NEED YOUR HELP

Thousands of vulnerable lives are now at stake. Battling these two threats is the biggest and most expensive effort in our history, and has drained our limited resources. To fight effectively on both fronts, we aim to raise £200,000 by midnight this Sunday (13 July 2025).

Every donation, large or small, will help protect lives, and UK taxpayers can add 25p to every £1 through Gift Aid at no extra cost.

Will you make a donation now to help protect vulnerable lives from these major threats?

Ask your local representatives to take the Both Lives Pledge