In the online survey of a representative sample of 2,018 British adults, three-in-ten respondents (30%) think the National Health Service (NHS) should fund abortions whenever they are requested, while a majority (56%) believe the NHS should only fund abortions in the event of medical emergencies, and six per cent want the NHS to never fund abortions.

In the United Kingdom, it is only legal to have an abortion during the first 24 weeks of pregnancy, provided that certain criteria are met. Almost half of Britons (48%) believe the time limit on abortion should be reduced to less than 24 weeks, just over a third (36%) think the current guidelines are adequate, and three per cent would extend the time limit to more than 24 weeks.

When asked about their personal feeling on abortion, three-in-ten respondents (31%) believe abortion should be permitted in all cases, while a slightly larger proportion (35%) would subject the procedure to greater restrictions than now. One-in-five Britons (21%) would permit abortion only in cases of rape, incest and to save the woman’s life, while one-in-twenty (5%) would allow pregnancy termination only to save the woman’s life.

A majority of Britons (57%) believe abortion should be legal only under certain circumstances, while one third (33%) think the procedure should be legal under any circumstances. Just four per cent of respondents would make abortion illegal under any circumstances.

Half of Britons (49%) believe women under the age of 18 should require the consent of their parents or legal guardians in order to have an abortion, and two-in-five (40%) think women in the United Kingdom have access to enough information about alternatives to abortion, such as adoption or counselling.

Respondents are divided on whether a debate on abortion is warranted, with 42 per cent saying that there is no point on re-opening this issue, and 40 per cent thinking a discussion on abortion in the UK is long overdue.

Gender Differences

The views of men and women do not go through any dramatic fluctuations on the personal feeling and legality questions. When it comes to the role of the NHS, men are more likely than women (59% to 53%) to endorse the idea of abortions only being funded in the event of medical emergencies. Male respondents are also more likely to call for women under the age of 18 to have the consent of their parents or legal guardians in order to have an abortion (52% to 45%).

The biggest gender gap is on the time limit question. Only one third of men (35%) would reduce it to less than 24 weeks, while three-in-five women (59%) are in favour of a reduction. Women are also more likely to call for re-opening the debate on abortion than men (44% to 37%).

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Full Report, Detailed Tables and Methodology (PDF)

CONTACT:

Mario Canseco, Vice President, Angus Reid Public Opinion
+877 730 3570
mario.canseco@angus-reid.com

Methodology: From March 6 to March 7, 2012, Angus Reid Public Opinion conducted an online survey among 2,018 randomly selected British adults who are Springboard UK panelists. The margin of error—which measures sampling variability—is +/- 2.2%. The results have been statistically weighted according to the most current education, age, gender and region data to ensure samples representative of the entire adult population of Great Britain. Discrepancies in or between totals are due to rounding.

In the online survey of a representative sample of 1,001 Canadian adults, 51 per cent of respondents believe there should be laws which outline when a woman can have an abortion in Canada. Conversely, 37 per cent of Canadians think there should be no laws on this matter and want women to have the unrestricted right to have an abortion at any time up to the moment of birth.

Among the most populated provinces, Alberta (59%) has the highest proportion of respondents who want to establish abortion laws, while two-in-five Quebecers (40%) would not make any changes. More than half of Conservative and Liberal voters in the 2011 federal election (57% and 52% respectively) call for regulations, while Green Party and New Democratic Party (NDP) voters (51% and 47% respectively) disagree with this notion.

Earlier this month, Rajendra Kale, editor-in-chief of the Canadian Medical Journal (CMAJ), suggested in an editorial that a fetus’s gender should not be revealed to expecting parents until after 30 weeks of pregnancy, in order to prevent female feticide.

Across the country, three-in-five Canadians (60%)—and two-thirds of women (66%)—believe there should be laws which outline whether a woman can have an abortion based solely on the gender of the fetus. Three-in-ten respondents (30%) think a woman should have the unrestricted right to have an abortion in any circumstance.

It is important to note that, while there is a noticeable dissimilarity between supporters of specific political parties on the overall question of abortion laws, a majority of people who voted for each one of the five major parties in 2011 believe that there should be a regulation to deal with gender-based abortion.

Review our August 2010 survey on abortion.

Full Report, Detailed Tables and Methodology (PDF)

CONTACT:

Mario Canseco, Vice President, Angus Reid Public Opinion
+877 730 3570
mario.canseco@angus-reid.com

Methodology: From January 19 to January 20, 2012, Angus Reid Public Opinion conducted an online survey among 1,001 randomly selected Canadian adults who are Angus Reid Forum panellists. The margin of error—which measures sampling variability—is +/- 3.1%, 19 times out of 20. The results have been statistically weighted according to the most current education, age, gender and region Census data to ensure a sample representative of the entire adult population of Canada. Discrepancies in or between totals are due to rounding.

In the online survey of a representative national sample of 1,005 Americans, 42 per cent of respondents believe there is no point in re-opening a debate about abortion in the U.S. right now, while 37 per cent think a debate about abortion is long overdue in the U.S., and the discussion should be re-opened.

Personal Feeling

Americans hold a wide range of feelings on abortion, with one-in-five respondents (21%) saying that the procedure should be permitted in all cases.

However, a sizeable proportion of Americans (27%) would only allow abortion in cases such as rape, incest and to save the woman’s life, while 13 per cent would consent to the procedure only if it is performed to save the woman’s life.

In addition, eight per cent of respondents would subject abortion to greater restrictions, while 18 per cent believe the same restrictions that are currently in place are sufficient.

Legality

Half of Americans (49%) believe abortion should be legal under certain circumstances, while three-in-ten (29%) would only allow it under certain circumstances, and 14 per cent would make the procedure illegal. Women (32%) are more likely than men (25%) to call for legal abortion under any circumstances.

Information and Consent

Three-in-five Americans (74%) think women under the age of 18 should have the consent of their parents or legal guardians in order to have an abortion, and more than half (55%) say that pregnant women in the United States have access to enough information about alternatives to abortion, such as adoption or counseling.

Analysis

Republicans and Democrats are at odds on this issue, with almost half of respondents from each political stripe advocating for a different course of action. Many Republicans want to re-open the abortion debate, and are more likely to call for changes and allow the procedure only in cases of rape, incest and danger to the mother. Democrats tend to side more with the argument of either permitting abortion in all cases—or keeping the status quo—and believe the time is not right for a debate on abortion.

Independents are closer to the views of Democrats in the questions of personal feeling and parental consent, but are not as certain about the idea of re-opening the abortion debate at this time.

Our previous polls on abortion in the United States can be accessed here: January 2010 / July 2010

Full Report, Detailed Tables and Methodology (PDF)

CONTACT:

Mario Canseco, Vice President, Angus Reid Public Opinion
+877 730 3570
mario.canseco@angus-reid.com

Methodology: From September 30 to October 2, 2011, Angus Reid Public Opinion conducted an online survey among 1,005 American adults who are Springboard America panelists. The margin of error—which measures sampling variability—is +/- 3.1%. The results have been statistically weighted according to the most current education, age, gender and region Census data to ensure a sample representative of the entire adult population of the United States.Discrepancies in or between totals are due to rounding.

Americans of all political stripes have a similar moral compass on issues such as contraception, divorce and infidelity, but some striking differences become evident when their party allegiance is assessed, a new Angus Reid Public Opinion poll has found.

In the online survey of a representative sample of 1,010 American adults, four-in-five respondents (80%) personally believe that contraception is morally acceptable.

At least half of respondents across the country feel the same way about gambling (68%), divorce (64%), sexual relations between an unmarried man and woman (64%), the death penalty (63%), medical research using stem cells obtained from human embryos (55%) and having a baby outside of marriage (52%).

More than a third of respondents think six other issues are morally acceptable: buying and wearing clothing made of animal fur (43%), sexual relations between two people of the same sex (40%), abortion (37%), doctor-assisted suicide (36%), medical testing on animals (34%) and pornography (33%).

Only a quarter of respondents believe prostitution (25%) and cloning animals (24%) are morally acceptable. Less than one-in-five feel the same way about using illegal drugs (18%), suicide (14%), polygamy (12%), cloning humans (11%), married men and/or women having an affair (8%) and pedophilia (4%).

Political Allegiance

Republicans are clearly not in agreement with Democrats and Independents on seven of the issues that were included in the survey, including medical research using stem cells obtained from human embryos (46%), having a baby outside of marriage (38%), abortion (27%), sexual relations between two people of the same sex (22%), pornography (22%), prostitution (16%) and illegal drugs (9%).

Democrats are more likely than the other two groups to find each issue as “morally acceptable” with the exception of three: the death penalty (57%), buying and wearing clothing made of animal fur (35%) and medical testing on animals (33%).

Independents are more likely to find sexual relations between an unmarried man and woman (73%) doctor-assisted suicide (42%), cloning animals (30%) and polygamy (16%) as “morally acceptable.”

Analysis

Republicans are evidently less accepting than other Americans when it comes to specific issues related to sex (same-sex relations, pornography and prostitution), and life (abortion, embryonic stem cell research). Democrats are at the other side of the spectrum on the treatment of animals (fur and medical testing) and are less likely to endorse the death penalty.

Independents are slightly closer to the Republicans on some moral issues (such as the death penalty and animal fur) and tend to side with the Democrats on others (such as prostitution and embryonic stem cell research).

Full Report, Detailed Tables and Methodology (PDF)

CONTACT:

Mario Canseco, Vice President, Communications & Media Relations
+877 730 3570
mario.canseco@angus-reid.com

Methodology: From September 30 to October 1, 2010, Angus Reid Public Opinion conducted an online survey among 1,010 American adults who are Springboard America panelists. The margin of error—which measures sampling variability—is +/- 3.1%. The results have been statistically weighted according to the most current education, age, gender and region Census data to ensure a sample representative of the entire adult population of the United States. Discrepancies in or between totals are due to rounding.

Conversely, 44 per cent of respondents say abortions should continue to be funded by the universal health care system whenever they are requested.

In Canada, the universality criterion establishes that all residents of a province or territory must be entitled to the insured, public-run health services provided by their provincial or territorial health care insurance plan on uniform terms and conditions.

In 1967, Canadian justice minister Pierre Trudeau presented a bill to partially liberalize abortion. On the same bill, Trudeau urged for the legalization of homosexuality and contraception, saying, "The state has no business in the bedrooms of the nation." The bill was signed into law in 1969, when Trudeau was prime minister.

In January 1988, Canada’s Supreme Court ruled—on an appeal filed by pro-abortion advocate Henry Morgentaler—that Canada’s abortion law was unconstitutional. Abortion is now legal in Canada with no limitation on when to perform it.

Earlier this year, Paul Szabo, a lawmaker with the federal opposition Liberal Party, said that a group of members of Parliament from his party and the governing Conservatives is planning to re-open the abortion debate in Canada, declaring, "Is [a vote] inevitable? I would say yes. (…) We will be back to reconsidering the question in the House [of Commons]. We’re taking incremental steps, small steps. It’s just a question of knowing when it’s the right time."

Polling Data

In Canada, abortions are provided on request to Canadian citizens and permanent residents, and are funded by the health care system. Which of these statements comes closer to your own point of view?

Complete Poll (PDF)

Version française (PDF)

Many Canadians ignore the fact that abortion procedures are not subject to any restrictions, a new Angus Reid Public Opinion poll has found.

In the online survey of a representative national sample of 1,022 Canadian adults, only 21 per cent of respondents know that in Canada a woman can request an abortion at any time during her pregnancy, with no restrictions whatsoever.

Conversely, 41 per cent of Canadians are under the impression that abortions are only available to women during the first three months of gestation.

Fifteen per cent of respondents think abortions are only allowed in the first trimester and only if the woman’s life is in danger, if there has been a rape, or if the foetus has serious complications.
One-in-ten think women can only have an abortion if their life is in danger, if there has been a rape, or if the foetus has serious complications.

Regulating Abortion

As for what Canadians would like abortion regulations to look like, the two most accepted options are the status quo (no restrictions) at 27%); and limiting the procedure to the first trimester without restrictions and then during the next six months but only if the woman’s life is in danger, if they have been the victim of rape, or if the foetus has serious defects (22%). No other option has the support from more than 15 per cent of Canadians.

Four-in-ten Canadians (41%) say they personally feel that abortions should be legal in all cases. A quarter (23%) support legal abortions but with some restrictions; 18 per cent only want legal abortions in cases of emergency; and nine per cent would only allow abortions to save a woman’s life.

Personal feeling differs slightly with what Canadians think the laws should regulate. Almost half of respondents (48%) say abortions should remain unrestricted, 42 per cent say they should be legal but restricted, and only six per cent say they should always be illegal.

Health Care

Canadians are divided on whether the state-run health care system should fund abortions or not: 44 per cent support funding in all cases, whereas 39 per cent support funding only in emergency situations.

Information and Consent

A majority of Canadians (55%) think women under the age of 18 should require consent from their parents or legal guardians to get an abortion; one third of respondents (32%) disagree.

While half of respondents (50%) consider that pregnant women have enough access to information about different options such as counselling and adoption, 31 per cent say they do not. A large majority (79%) would support provincial legislation demanding that health workers give information about alternatives to abortion to pregnant women.

A New Debate?

Although most Canadians (55%) think there is no point in re-opening the debate on abortion in the country, three-in-ten respondents (30%) believe it is time to re-open the discussion.

Our previous poll on abortion in Canada, conducted in January 2010, is available here.

Full Report, Detailed Tables and Methodology (PDF)

CONTACT:

Jaideep Mukerji, Vice President, Public Affairs
+514 409 0462
jaideep.mukerji@angus-reid.com

Methodology: From July 7 to July 8, 2010, Angus Reid Public Opinion conducted an online survey among 1,022 randomly selected Canadian adults who are Angus Reid Forum panelists. The margin of error—which measures sampling variability—is +/- 3.1%, 19 times out of 20. The results have been statistically weighted according to the most current education, age, gender and region Census data to ensure a sample representative of the entire adult population of Canada. Discrepancies in or between totals are due to rounding.

In addition, 30 per cent of respondents want abortion to be legal under any circumstances, while 15 per cent believe the practice should always be illegal.

The 1973 Supreme Court Roe v. Wade ruling gave American women the right to an abortion in the first trimester of pregnancy, and regulated the procedure during the second trimester "in ways that are reasonably related to maternal health." In the third trimester, a state can choose to proscribe abortion, except when necessary "for the preservation of the life or health of the mother."

Earlier this month, Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg discussed her views on the Roe v. Wade case, saying, "Over a generation of young women have grown up, understanding they can control their own reproductive capacity, and in fact their life’s destiny. We will never go back to the way it once was."

Polling Data

Do you think abortion should be legal under any circumstances, legal only under certain circumstances, or illegal in all circumstances?

Complete Poll (PDF)

Although most people in the United States think there is no need to re-open a national discussion on abortion, a large proportion of Americans do want to have this conversation, a new Angus Reid Public Opinion poll has found.

In the online survey of a representative national sample of 1,002 American adults, 33 per cent of respondents say a debate about abortion is long overdue in the U.S. and it is time to talk about this issue. However, 51 per cent of respondents disagree.

Personal Feeling

Americans remain divided on how to best regulate abortions. While one fifth of respondents say the procedure should be permitted in all cases, 18 per cent say it should be allowed but under the current restrictions.

An additional 26 per cent of Americans think abortion should only be permitted in cases of rape, incest, and to save a woman’s life; 15 per cent think abortions should only happen when the woman’s life is in danger; and nine per cent of respondents say they should be subject to greater restrictions than they are now.

Legality

Almost half of Americans (46%) think abortion should be legal but only under certain circumstances. In contrast, three-in-ten respondents say abortion should always be legal. Fifteen per cent of Americans would completely ban abortions, in all circumstances.

One-in-five Republicans (22%) advocate for an outright ban on abortion.

Information and Consent

Three quarters of U.S. respondents (75%) think women under the age of 18 should require parental consent before having an abortion. Only 16 per cent disagree with this notion.

About a third of respondents (32%) think pregnant women currently lack appropriate access to information on alternatives to abortion, such as counseling and adoptions. A majority of Americans (54%) think the opposite—than women have plenty of access to this kind of information.

Full Report, Detailed Tables and Methodology (PDF)

CONTACT:

Mario Canseco, Vice President, Public Affairs
+877 730 3570
mario.canseco@angus-reid.com

Methodology: From July 8 to July 9, 2010, Angus Reid Public Opinion conducted an online survey among 1,002 American adults who are Springboard America panelists. The margin of error—which measures sampling variability—is +/- 3.1%. The results have been statistically weighted according to the most current education, age, gender and region Census data to ensure a sample representative of the entire adult population of the United States.

Conversely, 37 per cent of respondents think the current 24-week window for legal abortions should remain in place. Only four per cent think it should be expanded.

Britain legalized abortion in 1967 through the Abortion Act. The time limit for abortions was set at 28 weeks, since doctors ruled that a foetus is viable outside the womb after that period of time.

Currently, a woman can only request an abortion within the first 24 weeks of pregnancy, provided that certain criteria are met. The limit was lowered from 28 to 24 weeks in 1990.

Last month, Britain’s Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists released a study concluding that foetuses cannot feel any pain during the first 24 weeks of development, saying that they are "undeveloped and sedated."

A spokesman for the government led by Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron declared: "The Prime Minister’s view is that he will be led by the science."

Polling Data

In Great Britain, it is only legal to have an abortion during the first 24 weeks of pregnancy, provided that certain criteria are met. Thinking about this, which of these statements comes closest to your own point of view?

Complete Poll (PDF)

A significant proportion of people in Great Britain think it is time to re-open the debate on abortion, a new Angus Reid Public Opinion poll has found.

In the online survey of a representative national sample of 2,000 British adults, 40 per cent of respondents say a national debate on abortion is long overdue and the discussion should be re-opened. However, 45 per cent of Britons disagree.

Legality and Funding

Two-in-five Britons (40%) think abortion should be legal in all cases. But half of respondents (50%) disagree, saying that abortions should only be performed under certain circumstances.

A third of respondents (34%) say the NHS should always fund abortions, but most people (51%) think state funding for abortions should be limited to medical emergencies. Seven per cent of Britons say the NHS should never provide funding for an abortion.

There is no difference in how women and men approach this particular question.

24-Week Time Limit

Almost half of Britons (46%) think the 24-week window currently allowed for terminating pregnancies should be lowered. Respondents are also divided on this issue, with more than a third (37%) believing that the current window should stay as is.

Women (58%) are much more likely than men (33%) to call for a reduction of the 24-week period. Respondents over the age of 55 (50%) are also more inclined than others to call for a shorter window.

Information and Consent

Almost half of respondents (48%) think it would be a good idea to require parental consent from women under the age of 18 in order to perform an abortion. Over a third of respondents (37%) disagree.

Women (50%) are only slightly more inclined than men (46%) to support mandatory parental consent. Younger Britons—aged 18 to 34—are less supportive of this measure than their older counterparts (42% against more than 50% in the remaining brackets).

Two-in-five respondents (41%) think pregnant women have access to enough information about alternatives to abortion, such as counselling and adoption. A large proportion of Britons (32%) think this is not the case and that pregnant women lack enough information right now.

Full Report, Detailed Tables and Methodology (PDF)

Download Full Tables

Download Methodology Statement

CONTACT:

Andy Morris, Research Director, London
+ 44-207-065-7272
andy.morris@angus-reid.com

Methodology: From July 7 to July 9, 2010, Angus Reid Public Opinion conducted an online survey among 2,000 randomly selected British adults who are Springboard UK panelists. The margin of error—which measures sampling variability—is +/- 2.2%. The results have been statistically weighted according to the most current education, age, gender and region data to
ensure samples representative of the entire adult population of Great Britain. Discrepancies in or between totals are due to rounding.