A young woman was allowed to obtain two abortions because she did not like the physical features of the babies' fathers, doctors have revealed.
In a case condemned as "abortion on demand", the woman obtained abortions because she did not like the height of one boyfriend and the eyes of another. The woman, who was 19 when she had her first abortion, was about to undergo a third abortion on the ground that she did not like the father's mouth when she miscarried.
Doctors said the woman was able to convince her GP that she was "preoccupied" with the fear that her baby would share the father's characteristics. The law in England allows women to obtain an abortion if two doctors agree that there is a risk to the mental or physical health of the mother. But at no stage in her requests for the three abortions was it suggested that the woman might have a psychiatric illness.
A spokesman for the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children said last night that it was deplorable. The spokesman said: "Ninety per cent of abortions are not on medical grounds and this highlights that." Calling for a crackdown on the availability of abortions on demand, the spokesman said: "Can it be that a life can be terminated because the baby might be too short?"