"However much I dislike the idea of abortion, you should not criminalize a woman who, in very difficult circumstances, makes that choice"
About this Quote
The real argument lands on “you should not criminalize a woman.” Blair doesn’t defend abortion as a right so much as he rejects punishment as an instrument of social order. That’s a distinctly statesmanlike framing: the state’s power is the subject, not the procedure. By centering “a woman” rather than “abortion,” he drags the debate from abstract morality into a courtroom scenario, where handcuffs and prosecution look less like righteousness and more like cruelty.
“In very difficult circumstances” is the quote’s strategic fog. It invites empathy without specifying rape, health risk, poverty, or coercion; listeners can project the version of hardship that best fits their conscience. The subtext is that real life is messier than clean legislative lines, and that criminal law is a blunt tool for moral disputes.
Context matters: Blair’s New Labour brand thrived on triangulation, offering ethical seriousness without the punitive instinct that often accompanies it. The line gestures toward a liberalizing Britain while respecting lingering social conservatism, converting a combustible culture-war issue into a question of proportionality and governance.
Quote Details
| Topic | Human Rights |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite | Cite this Quote |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Blair, Tony. (n.d.). However much I dislike the idea of abortion, you should not criminalize a woman who, in very difficult circumstances, makes that choice. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/however-much-i-dislike-the-idea-of-abortion-you-27836/
Chicago Style
Blair, Tony. "However much I dislike the idea of abortion, you should not criminalize a woman who, in very difficult circumstances, makes that choice." FixQuotes. Accessed February 2, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/however-much-i-dislike-the-idea-of-abortion-you-27836/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"However much I dislike the idea of abortion, you should not criminalize a woman who, in very difficult circumstances, makes that choice." FixQuotes, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/however-much-i-dislike-the-idea-of-abortion-you-27836/. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.






