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Checked stats and info on abortions in Canada:

Abortion was completely banned in Canada in 1869. As in other countries, illegal abortions were still performed, leading to the deaths of many women every year.

The court noted that it was mostly men that were deciding if a woman should have an abortion. Also, because some pro-life doctors would not take any case to a Therapeutic Abortion Committee, or would only take a very severe case, and because some of these doctors would not even refer a women to a doctor who would present the case to the TAC, there were barriers to women who wanted to have their applications considered by a TAC. It could take a long time for a woman to find a doctor that would take her case to the TAC. Finally, the TAC had to decide on each request for an abortion. These factors resulted in a time lag that meant that abortions were being performed much later than they could have been.

Over 110,000 abortions are performed in Canada every year, that represents a ratio of about 30 abortions to every 100 live births.

In Canada, Prior to 1969, taking steps to cause an abortion was an offence liable to life imprisonment.

In 1988, the Supreme Court of Canada decision in Her Majesty, The Queen in Right of Canada v. Dr. Henry Morgentaler, Dr. Leslie Frank Smoling and Dr. Robert Scott, indexed by the court as R. v. Morgentaler, declared this entire section to be of no force or effect because it was held to violate section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Section 7 states that: “Everyone has the right to life, liberty, and the security of the person and the right not to be deprived thereof except in accordance with the principles of fundamental justice.”

Abortions in Canada are legal for all females 12 years of age or older. Females aged 12 through to the age of majority do not require parental approval.

Abortions in Canada are provided on request and funded by Medicare, to Canadian citizens and permanent residents (as with most medical procedures) in hospitals across the country.

Third-trimester abortions are not generally available.

In a Léger poll taken September 2001, 46.6% of respondents say they are personally "for" abortion, while 37.6% say they are personally "against" abortion.

In a Léger poll taken January 2002, 47% of respondents said abortion was "not immoral," while 41.8% said it was.

In a poll conducted by the National Post in November 2002, 78% of respondents answered "yes" to the question: "Should women have complete freedom on their decision to have an abortion?".

In an April 2006 Leger poll, 34% of respondents said they found abortion "immoral," behind paedophilia, extramarital affair, prostitution, alcohol abuse, sexual relations before the age of 16, pornographic films and blasphemy.

Among provinces, British Columbia and Quebec have the highest percentage who are pro-choice, and the Prairies have the highest percentage who are pro-life.

In a June 2008 Angus Reid Strategies poll, almost half of respondents (46%) believe abortion should be permitted in all cases. Roughly one-in-five Canadians (19%) would subject abortion to greater restrictions than now, 22 per cent would allow the procedure only in cases such as rape, incest and to save the woman's life, and seven per cent would only permit abortion to save the woman's life.

Roman Catholic response

The Roman Catholic Church in Canada has been an outspoken critic of abortion. According to the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, "Abortion is killing Canada's future". Catholics argue that human life begins at conception, not at birth, and that the unborn human being needs to be protected