50 BABIES A YEAR ARE ALIVE AFTER AN ABORTION; New Controversy over the Legal Time Limit for Terminations

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Byline: FIONA MACRAE

THE abortion debate was reignited last night after it emerged that 50 babies live through botched terminations in Britain every year.

The figures are the first to show the true scale of a problem thought to have been confined to just a handful of babies.

Now some of the country's leading doctors will investigate how so many survived to be born after just 22 weeks of pregnancy. Shockingly, some of the babies may have gone through more than one attempted abortion.

The revelation triggered demands for the time limit for terminations to be cut.

The procedure is currently offered 'on demand' up until the 24th week of pregnancy.

The latest figures emerged from the Confidential Enquiry into Maternal and Child Health (Cemach), which monitors pregnancy deaths on behalf of Britain's six royal …