These assessments show what action government has taken to carry out the United Nation’s (UN’s) recommendations, within the scope of our methodology.
They include recommendations from the UN committees associated with the human rights treaties that the UK government has signed and ratified (agreed to follow), which are:
- International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR)
- International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR)
- International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD)
- Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)
- Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)
- Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)
- Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment (CAT)
Overview of action taken
Access to maternal health services for ethnic minority and migrant women
What we assessed in the recommendation
Do more to make sure migrant women and ethnic minority women have equal access to maternal health services, to reduce maternal and infant deaths. Facilities should be properly set up to care for women during pregnancy, while giving birth and after birth, particularly in rural areas.
ICESCR concluding observations 2025, paragraph 53:
The Committee recommends that the State Party, along with the devolved governments of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales: (a) Increase efforts to ensure equal access to maternal health services for migrant women and women from ethnic minority groups with a view to reducing maternal and infant mortality rates and to adequately equip facilities for antenatal, perinatal and postnatal care, particularly in rural areas.
CERD concluding observations 2024, paragraph 44:
Recalling its previous concluding observations, the Committee recommends that the State party: (c) Take further and effective steps to decrease infant and maternal mortality rates among ethnic minorities.
The CERD recommendation was made in September 2024 and the ICESCR recommendation was made in March 2025.
Between January and May 2024, before the recommendations were made, the Office for Equality and Opportunity (OEO) carried out research on the experiences of ethnic minority women in maternity care. The research aimed to inform work to improve maternity and neonatal care for women and babies, and to address inequalities. The final research report was published in August 2025. The UK government has not publicly stated how the findings of the research will be used.
Since the recommendations were made, there has been no government action specifically targeted to support migrant women’s access to maternal health services.
However, in June 2025, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) announced they would be conducting a rapid investigation into NHS maternity and neonatal care. The terms of reference state that one of the aims of the investigation is to reduce inequalities and promote health equity across services, with a particular focus on people from ethnic minority backgrounds and other deprived groups. The chair of the investigation, Baroness Amos, published her ‘reflections and initial impressions’ on the investigation in December 2025, and an 8-week call for evidence was launched in January 2026. In February 2026, Baroness Amos published an interim report on her findings. The final report and recommendations were published in June 2026. The government has stated that these will inform a new national maternity and neonatal action plan.
In July 2025, the government announced plans to establish a National Maternity and Neonatal Taskforce, which will develop the new maternity and neonatal action plan. The taskforce’s membership was published in March 2026 and its terms of reference were published in May 2026.
In December 2025, the government published a response to a Health and Social care Committee report on Black maternal health, which included evidence about the treatment and care of ethnic minority women. The government’s response highlighted the need to improve the care of Black women and their babies and confirmed its commitment to ‘closing the Black, Asian and minority ethnic maternal mortality gap’. It summarised the actions they are taking to improve care, such as a rapid investigation into NHS maternity and neonatal services, announced in June 2025. It also included a commitment to making sure that all NHS trusts have completed a Perinatal Equity and Anti‑Discrimination Programme by the end of 2027.
In January 2026, NHS England (a non-departmental public body responsible for running the NHS in England) published the Maternal Care Bundle (MCB). This is a set of national standards for care provided by maternity services, aimed at reducing maternal mortality and morbidity, and inequalities in outcomes. All NHS trusts providing maternity services and Integrated Care Boards are expected to implement the MCB by March 2027.
Assessment up to date as of June 2026.
Access to sexual and reproductive healthcare
What we assessed in the recommendation
Do more to improve access to, and availability of, sexual and reproductive healthcare services and information, including for disabled people and people living in remote or rural areas. This should include safe abortion services, such as abortion medication, contraception and emergency contraception. Information and education on family planning should be available in accessible formats, including Easy Read.
ICESCR concluding observations 2025, paragraph 53:
The Committee recommends that the State Party, along with the devolved governments of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales: (b) Strengthen measures to ensure the accessibility and availability of appropriate, good-quality sexual and reproductive healthcare services and information, such as access to safe abortion services, including abortion medication, contraception and emergency contraception, for all women and adolescent girls in the State Party, particularly those living in rural or remote areas.
CRPD concluding observations 2017, paragraph 55:
The Committee recommends that the State party, in close collaboration with representative organizations of persons with disabilities: (c) Ensure equal access to sexual and reproductive health-care services, as set out in target 3.7 of the Sustainable Development Goals, and provide information and education on family planning for persons with disabilities in accessible formats, including Easy Read.
The CRPD recommendation was made in October 2017 and the ICESCR recommendation was made in March 2025.
Local authorities, and other public bodies involved in commissioning sexual health services, have been subject to the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) since April 2011. The PSED requires them to consider how they are eliminating discrimination and advancing equal opportunities, including for women, men and disabled people, when planning and delivering their functions.
Since the recommendations were made, the UK government has taken some steps to improve access to services.
In February 2019, the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) produced Sexual Health Quality Standards for commissioners (local authorities) and providers (clinics). NICE is an executive non-departmental body funded by the UK government. The quality standards require providers to make reasonable adjustments to ensure that people with additional needs, such as physical, sensory or learning disabilities, can access services. However, it does not specify that information must be in Easy Read.
In July 2023, the NHS added a ‘women’s health’ area to its website. This includes information on contraception, abortion and sexual and reproductive health.
In April 2026, the UK government published a renewed Women’s Health Strategy to update its original Women’s Health Strategy for England, published in July 2022. The original strategy committed to expanding women’s health hubs, which aim to improve access and quality of care across health services. This includes sexual and reproductive health services. The NHS 2024/25 operational planning guidance set a target for every integrated care board (ICB) to establish at least one women’s health hub in every ICB area by the end of December 2024. The UK government provided £25 million of funding to support this across the 2023/24 and 2024/25 financial years. There is no evidence this target was met and it was removed from the NHS 2025/26 operational planning guidance.
The renewed Women’s Health Strategy committed to providing a women’s health service in every neighbourhood, building on the previous ‘health hub’ model. It also commits to making sure that women have access to safe and high-quality sexual and reproductive healthcare services, and confirmed that questions related to menopause have been added to the NHS Health check. Free health assessments are offered to eligible adults aged 40 to 74 every 5 years. While the strategy states there will be a focus on reducing health inequalities, it does not specifically reference disabled people or people living in remote or rural areas.
Access to safe abortion services and medication
In March 2020, the UK government announced temporary measures to allow women to access early medical abortion at home. Women in the first ten weeks of pregnancy could access pills for early medical abortion through a teleconsultation, and both pills could be taken at home. This change was made permanent through an amendment to the Abortion Act 1967 which came into force in August 2022.
Abortion is currently legal in the UK if specific circumstances set out in the Abortion Act 1967 are met. The Crime and Policing Act 2026, which became law in April 2026, decriminalised abortion in England and Wales for women when acting in relation to their own pregnancies.
The Public Order Act 2023 introduced a new offence of interference with access to or provision of abortion services. This offence applies within a 150 metre radius of an abortion service provider, and is referred to as a 'safe access zone'. This measure came into force in October 2024.
The renewed Women’s Health Strategy, published in April 2026, commits to supporting the sustainability of abortion services. This includes:
• removing financial disincentives to providing timely abortion care
• helping integrated care boards (ICBs) to implement NHS abortion commissioning guidance, which focuses on increasing service capacity and choice, and improving quality
There is no data available on how many ICBs have implemented the guidance fully.
Access to contraception
In July 2021, the UK government announced that progestogen-only contraceptive pills would be available to purchase over the counter at pharmacies without prescription.
In October 2025, NHS England announced that the emergency contraception pill would be available for free at community pharmacies.
The renewed Women’s Health Strategy, published in April 2026, commits to improving access to contraception. This includes by making it simpler to access long-acting reversible contraception (LARC), such as intrauterine devices (IUDs), within two years, and improving pain relief in contraceptive device insertion.
Providing accessible information
Public sector bodies that provide information via websites (including on family planning) have been subject to accessibility requirements under the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 since September 2018. However, there are some exemptions if complying would be a ‘disproportionate burden’.
Assessment up to date as of June 2026.
Consenting to medical procedures
What we assessed in the recommendation
Ban non-urgent and non-essential medical or surgical treatment of intersex children until they are old and mature enough to make their own decisions. Set up an independent system to monitor the ban. Investigate when this treatment happens. Provide justice and support for intersex people who underwent surgery or treatment without their consent, and rehabilitation for those who experienced severe pain and suffering.
CRC concluding observations 2023, paragraph 35:
Recalling joint general recommendation No. 31 of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women/general comment No. 18 of the Committee on the Rights of the Child on harmful practices (2014) and its previous recommendations, the Committee recommends that the State party: (d) Legally prohibit non-urgent and non-essential (including feminizing or masculinizing) medical or surgical treatment of intersex children before they are of sufficient age or maturity to make their own decisions, ensure that such incidents are investigated, provide redress and psychosocial support to victims and establish a mechanism to independently monitor the implementation of the legal prohibition.
CAT concluding observations 2019, paragraph 65:
The State party should ensure that: (b) Persons who have been subjected to such procedures without their consent and resulting in severe pain and suffering obtain redress, including the means for rehabilitation.
The UK government has not banned non-urgent and non-essential medical or surgical treatment of intersex children. It is lawful for those with parental responsibility to consent to treatment on children who do not yet have legal capacity to give their own consent. While this treatment must be in the ‘best interests of the child’, there is no agreed definition of this term in relation to the treatment of intersex children in The Children Act 1989.
There is no formal redress or financial compensation scheme for intersex people who underwent surgery or treatment without their consent. This treatment is still lawful if parental consent is given.
Intersex people who underwent surgery or treatment without their consent that resulted in severe pain and suffering may be able to access emotional support through the NHS. This includes support through the NHS Talking Therapies programme or, depending on their age, child and young person mental health services.
Assessment up to date as of December 2024.
Amending abortion law
What we assessed in the recommendation
Amend abortion law to guarantee women’s right to reproductive and sexual autonomy without legalising selective abortion due to foetal deficiency.
CRPD concluding observations 2017, paragraph 13:
The Committee recommends that the State party amend its abortion law accordingly. Women’s rights to reproductive and sexual autonomy should be respected without legalizing selective abortion on the ground of fetal deficiency.
The legal framework for abortion has not been amended since the recommendation was made in 2017.
The Abortion Act 1967 (as amended) permits abortion up to the point of live birth if there is ‘substantial risk that if the child were born it would suffer from such physical or mental abnormalities as to be seriously handicapped’.
Assessment up to date as of December 2024.
Access to abortion
What we assessed in the recommendation
Make sure all women and girls can access abortions if carrying on with the pregnancy is likely to cause severe pain and suffering. This should include cases where the pregnancy is the result of rape or incest, where the foetus has a life-threatening condition or where the health of the pregnant person is at risk.
CAT concluding observations 2019, paragraph 47:
The Committee recommends that the State party ensure that all women and girls in the State party, including in Northern Ireland, have effective access to termination of pregnancy in situations in which its continuation is likely to result in severe pain and suffering, such as when the pregnancy is the result of rape or incest or in cases of fatal foetal impairment, in addition to cases in which the life or health of the pregnant person is at risk. The State party should also ensure that women and girls in Northern Ireland have effective access to post-abortion health care and that neither patients nor their doctors face criminal sanctions or other threats for seeking or providing such care.
Since the recommendation was made in May 2019, the primary legislation governing the situations in which abortion is available has not been changed.
A pregnancy can be ended when one, or more, of the following grounds are met:
- Continuing with the pregnancy would involve a higher risk of physical or mental harm to the pregnant woman, or her children, than if the pregnancy were terminated.
- A termination is necessary to prevent serious, permanent injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman.
- Continuing with the pregnancy would involve a higher risk to the life of the pregnant woman than if the pregnancy were terminated.
- There is a substantial risk that if the child were born it would suffer from ‘physical or mental abnormalities’ as to be ‘seriously handicapped’.
Ground 1 is limited to pregnancies that have not reached their 24th week, whereas grounds 2, 3 and 4 do not have time limits.
As of August 2022, the UK government made early at home medical abortions permanently available for pregnancies up to 9 weeks and 6 days in England and Wales via secondary legislation. This was after their temporary introduction in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Assessment up to date as of December 2024.
Decriminalising abortion in England, Wales and Scotland
What we assessed in the recommendation
Continue to guarantee legal, effective, safe, confidential and equal access to abortion for women and girls by changing laws to fully decriminalise abortion in England, Wales and Scotland.
ICCPR concluding observations 2024, paragraph 23:
Bearing in mind paragraph 8 of the Committee’ s general comment No. 36 (2018) on the right to life, the State party should continue its efforts to guarantee legal, effective, safe, confidential and equal access to abortion for women and girls across the State party. In particular, the Committee calls on the State party to (a) Revise its legislation to fully decriminalize abortion in England, Wales and Scotland, including by repealing the relevant provisions of the 1861 Offences Against the Persons Act as applied in England and Wales, with a view to ensuring that women are not prosecuted for having an abortion.
The Offences Against the Persons Act 1861 has not been repealed. Abortion in the UK is still subject to criminal law and women can be prosecuted for having an abortion outside the legal grounds set out in the Abortion Act 1967, as amended by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990.
Assessment up to date as of December 2024.
Page updates
Published:
29 January 2025
Last updated:
27 August 2026