The British Medical Association on Wednesday at its annual conference in Torquay, England, voted 189-89 to approve a proposal recommending the United Kingdom eliminate a requirement that women seeking abortions of a fetus of less than 13 weeks' gestation obtain the signature of two doctors before undergoing a procedure, London's Times reports (Hawkes, Times, 6/28). The proposal would only require one physician to approve an abortion of less than 13 weeks' gestation after explaining the positives and negatives of the procedure, BBC News reports (Triggle, BBC News, 6/27).

Tony Calland, chair of the BMA ethics committee, said that the change could reduce the time women must wait to obtain the procedure, which currently can be up to seven weeks in some areas. According to the Times, nearly 90% of abortions in the country are conducted in the first trimester (Times, 6/28).

According to Reuters, the proposal now becomes official policy of BMA, which represents about 70% of doctors in the country, and executives of the association plan to lobby U.K.'s Parliament to adopt the changes. Members of Parliament are expected to consider amendments to 1967 Abortion Act later this year (Castle, Reuters, 6/27). A spokesperson for the U.K. Department of Health said, "The government has no plans to change the law on abortion" (BBC News, 6/27).

BMA representatives at the meeting also voted to reject a proposal that would allow nurses and midwives to perform abortions, as well as a measure that would permit the procedure to be performed outside licensed clinics (Reuters, 6/27). Opponents of the proposals said that surgical abortions are highly complex, BBC News reports (BBC News, 6/27).