How are abortion and capital punishment viewed in England?
First, my view: (I’m from Wales and currently live in Scotland, but I did live in England for a year or two, and I don’t think my views differ significantly from a similarly educated Englishman’s). I’m in favour of abortion—though, obviously, I’d rather people took sensible precautions to avoid having to have an abortion—and I actually think that allowing abortion shows a respect for life and quality of life. I’m not in favour of capital punishment. I do think that there are certain conditions where killing someone against their will is the least of several evils, but I don’t think that these conditions hold in any modern country. Second, the law: No part of the United Kingdom allows capital punishment, and only Northern Ireland does not allow abortion (except in very limited circumstances). So the law in all of Great Britain (that is, Wales, Scotland and England) is in line with my own views. Third, public opinion: a MORI poll in 2006 (
