A research paper has revealed shocking revelations in the debate on abortions. The paper, published in the May issue of BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, reveals that 102 (3.2%) babies out of 3,189 were born alive after abortion.

|PIC1|The paper has been released following a 10-year analysis of abortions for foetal anomaly in the West Midlands of Britain.

The results of the research show that live births occurred in a shocking 18 out of 20 maternity units in the West Midlands.

Julia Millington of the Alive and Kicking Campaign said: "Yet again we are confronted with the gruesome reality that babies are fighting for their lives as doctors try to abort them. The increasingly widespread practice of abortion for disability reflects very poorly on a society that prides itself on equal rights for people with disabilities."

She added: "But this paper also begs the question, if 102 out of 3,189 babies aborted for reasons of impairment are born alive, then how many healthy babies must be surviving?"

Earlier this month experts warned of an imminent crisis in the NHS as increasing numbers of doctors refuse to carry out abortions.

According to the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, there has been a big rise in the number of doctors who are "conscientious objectors".

About 190,000 abortions take place in England and Wales annually.

Abortion is legal in Britain up to 24 weeks, however it can occur later if doctors believe the baby has a severe disability or if the mother's life is at risk.

Experts say the decline in the number of NHS doctors willing to perform abortions stems from their ability to "pick and choose" the areas they train and specialise in - and very few opt to carry out terminations when they can choose other areas such as fertility medicine.

The latest research is likely to further enflame the debate on the ethical stance of Britain's abortion laws.

Millington from Alive & Kicking continued: "The survival instinct of these premature babies is very strong but without proper neonatal care they stand no chance at all. With live births after abortion occurring in 18 of the 20 maternity units in the West Midlands alone it is difficult to comprehend the number of babies, throughout the country, left fighting for their lives."

She concluded: "'These cases are recorded as live births and neonatal deaths, and the suggestion that the number of cases might be 2.4 times higher than those recorded in the national statistics means that our already alarming abortion rates are even higher than acknowledged."