Graphic showing a group of protestors with placards reading "Decriminalise Abortion", "Safe Access", and "Abortion is Healthcare".

Decriminalise Abortion Now

We need to fully decriminalise abortion in Scotland and introduce a new, rights-based framework for abortion provision.

Bodily autonomy is a key tenet of humanism as defined in the Amsterdam Declaration. We support an individual’s right to choose an abortion without fear of legal repercussions.

Even today, abortion is still only legal under certain circumstances. This means that women and pregnant people face unnecessary medical gatekeeping when seeking to end a pregnancy. For example, the current law requires two doctors to sign off on an abortion request and individuals are compelled to justify a deeply personal decision.

We are part of Let’s Change The Act, a campaign to fully decriminalise abortion in Scotland and create a modernised, health-based framework for abortion care.

The problem

Historically, abortion has been seen as shameful and wrong within Christian culture. In Scotland, abortion is criminalised by the “common law,” a historical and evolving body of law. In England and Wales abortion is specifically criminalised by the Offence Against the Persons Act 1861. The Abortion Act 1967 set out certain criteria on which abortion is legal across the UK. (Learn more from this article by legal expert Dr. Lynsey Mitchell.)

Since 1967, prosecutions for abortion in Scotland have been very rare. But modern abortion procedures, such as the online provision of abortion pills, are very different from historic versions. Because common law is based on precedent, it may not be able to guarantee that such procedures are legal.

All this means that possible prosecutions of women and pregnant people for abortion in Scotland cannot be ruled out. And many people find the system for accessing abortion care intrusive and undignified because it is based on criminal law.

The solution

The Scottish government must fully decriminalise abortion using legislation passed in the Scottish parliament. The Abortion Act 1967 must be replaced with a modernised, rights-based framework for abortion care.

Our campaign

In 2023, Humanist Society Scotland co-signed a letter calling for the creation of an expert group on the decriminalisation of abortion. This group was formed and Humanist Society Scotland worked with healthcare stakeholders, equalities organisations, and reproductive rights groups to inform and advise the expert group as they prepared a report outlining the need for decriminalisation. The report has now been published and the group has concluded its work.

In October 2025 we were one the founding groups to launch Let’s Change the Act, a campaign spearheaded by our colleagues at Engender to press for the decriminalisation of abortion and a health-based framework for providing abortion care.

Join the campaign!

Be part of the campaign to properly decriminalise abortion in Scotland and introduce a modern, rights-based system for abortion care. It’s free to join as an individual or representative of a group.

Let's Change the Act: Join Up