Health campaigners have called for Jacob Rees-Mogg to issue a correction after he incorrectly said that the morning-after pill caused abortion.
The Commons leader made the comment to Labour MP Dame Diana Johnson, who has consistently campaigned for cheaper emergency contraceptives, after she asked him for a debate on “proper funding and accessibility for women’s contraception and health services”.
Mr Rees-Mogg replied that Dame Diana “cannot expect me to speak in favour of abortifacients [drugs that cause abortion]”, sparking outrage online where women rushed to point out his inaccuracy.
The British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) has demanded that the MP correct himself “as a matter of urgency”.
Katherine O’Brien, associate director of communications and campaigns at BPAS, said: “The past two years have demonstrated how quickly scientific falsehoods and ‘fake news’ can circulate, and how damaging this can be.
“While we highly doubt that many women would take medical guidance from Mr Rees-Mogg, he nevertheless should correct the record as a matter of urgency. Emergency contraception is not, as Mr Rees-Mogg asserted, an ‘abortifacient’.”
The morning-after pill prevents pregnancy but can’t end a pregnancy or damage an existing pregnancy.
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Ms O’Brien added: “If Mr Rees-Mogg wants to reduce the numbers of women needing to undergo an abortion, he should welcome any and every opportunity to find ways to improve women’s access to contraception, not attempt to block parliamentary debates on the matter due to his ignorance or personal ideology.”
Mr Rees-Mogg said in 2017 that he was completely against abortion in all circumstances – including rape and incest.
The call for debate was prompted by Boots lowering the price of its morning-after pill on Thursday to £10, which BPAS praised as a step towards ending “the grossly sexist surcharge on emergency contraception.”
