Nine in ten adults in the UK now identify as pro-choice, a study has revealed. According to the research, commissioned by Marie Stopes International, 90 per cent of adults believe that women should be able to access abortion services in Britain. The YouGov survey of 5,098 adults found that people become progressively more pro-choice as they age. Over three quarters (82 per cent) of those aged 18 to 24 believed women should have access to abortion care, compared with 90 per cent of people aged between 25-49, and 92 per cent of over-65s. These figures are considerably higher than those estimated in 2017, when a survey by social research institute NatCen revealed that 70 per cent of people would support a woman ending her pregnancy. The new research forms part of Marie Stopes’ ongoing campaign #SmashAbortionStigma, which addresses the need for open conversation around abortion. In 2019, a study by YouGov found that more than three quarters (79 per cent) of women wanted to talk more about abortion. The study also looked into male attitudes. The research revealed that men are overwhelmingly supportive of their sexual partners decision to have an abortion, with 91 per cent considering it important to provide emotional support. A further 82 per cent think it’s important to accompany their partner to medical appointments. It also found that men and women's attitudes towards abortion were similar, with 88 per cent of men believing women should be able to access abortion care, compared to 91 per cent of women.

But despite a large number of men identifying as pro-choice, the study found that many still feel left in the dark with conversations around abortion. Just over a third of men (34 per cent) felt uninformed about the topic, and more than four in 10 (42 per cent) would like more information about abortion to be made available. Katriana, 25, from London, decided to have an abortion after getting pregnant while using contraception. She said that although her sexual partner backed her decision at first, the closer she got to the date of the procedure, the less supportive he became. “That was a really hard pill to swallow and made the experience more difficult,” she said. “I felt let down and thought maybe he thought badly of me.” Katriana’s partner Steffan, aged 25, said that although he has always been pro-choice, looking back he “didn’t really know anything about abortion.” “It wasn’t something I’d talked about and I didn’t know of anyone who had been through one. I didn’t want to tell my friends or my parents, so I only told my brother,” he said. “I don’t think I had a real awareness of the situation because I didn’t attend the appointments, and if you aren’t there, you feel removed from the situation.” He says that in hindsight, he wishes he “would have been there for her more, before and after.”