Facing backlash from pro-life campaigners who warned her absence would be a “damning indictment,” the Archbishop of Canterbury has confirmed she will be present in the House of Lords on Wednesday for a vote on amendments that would effectively legalize abortion up to birth in the UK.
The office of Archbishop Sarah Mullally said Tuesday she will attend the vote on the Crime and Policing Bill despite launching a six-day walking pilgrimage from St. Paul’s Cathedral in London that same afternoon.
The pilgrimage is part of her spiritual preparation before her installation as Archbishop of Canterbury on March 25.
“The Archbishop will be in the House of Lords on Wednesday to vote on the proposed amendments to the Crime and Policing Bill. It will not affect the pilgrimage or its route, which starts this afternoon,” a Lambeth Palace spokesperson said.
Mullally drew sharp criticism after an announcement last week that she would begin the 140-kilometer (87-mile) trek on Tuesday, raising fears among pro-life groups that she would miss the key vote.
The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC) said it would have been a “damning indictment on Sarah Mullally personally, and the Church of England hierarchy more generally” if she failed to show up. The group has urged the archbishop and other bishops to oppose the measure as forcefully as they have spoken against assisted suicide legislation.
The amendments, already approved by the House of Commons last year, would effectively legalize abortion killing babies in England and Wales at any stage of pregnancy — removing prosecutions for late-term abortions even beyond the current 24-week limit.
Opponents argue the change would permit abortions up to birth for any reason.
Dr. Calum Miller, a medical doctor and ethicist who has pressed Church of England bishops to attend, called the confirmation “good news” and encouraged other bishops to follow her lead.
Mullally’s position on abortion has been scrutinized since her appointment as Justin Welby’s successor after she said in the past that she would describe herself more as “pro-choice rather than pro-life.”
In comments to Church Times last October, she clarified her views.“I am aware that I have in the past been labelled as ‘pro-choice’ — perhaps because of my previous career — but this is a complex debate, and I don’t think my or others’ views can be so simply categorised,” she said.
“I support the Church of England’s principled opposition to abortion, which comes with a recognition that there can be strictly limited conditions under which abortion may be preferable to any available alternatives. Above all else, women facing unwanted pregnancies require compassion and care, and a path that supports them. They are confronted with the hardest of choices, and they must be supported.”
The vote comes as Mullally prepares to lead the global Anglican Communion, with pro-life advocates watching closely to see whether senior bishops will speak and vote against what they call extreme abortion measures.
