Gender abortion not illegal, says top prosecutor: Starmer says nothing in law prevents a woman from terminating a foetus because it is a girl Director of Public Prosecutions say prosecutors will face 'real difficulties' He said there is 'nothing' in abortion law on gender-based termination Some communities opt for abortion if the baby is not a boy Britain's Director of Public Prosecutions, Keir Smarter declared that nothing in abortion law prevented a woman from terminating her pregnancy because she did not want a girl The Director of Public Prosecutions yesterday appeared to back abortions based on gender. Keir Smarter declared that nothing in abortion law prevented a woman from terminating her pregnancy because she did not want a girl. He said abortion was only criminal if it was carried out without the approval of two doctors who said "in good faith" that termination was necessary to protect the woman's health. And he added that prosecutors would face "real difficulties" if they tried to bring charges against doctors for failing to assess the health of their patients properly. In many cases doctors approve abortions without even meeting their patient, Mr Starmer said. He added that NHS inquiries last year discovered GPs were signing batches of forms giving approval to abortions in advance of the patients arriving. The statement from the DPP appeared to endorse the claims of pro-abortion campaigners that abortion on grounds of gender is fully lawful. It provoked protests from MPs, who say British law now offers abortion on demand in all but name. Mr Starmer's statement comes amid deepening concerns that growing numbers of women from some Asian communities are opting for abortion when they become pregnant with girls rather than boys. It follows the decision by the Crown Prosecution Service not to prosecute two doctors who are said to have offered a termination to a woman claiming she was pregnant with a girl. Last month the CPS said there was enough evidence to prosecute the two doctors, but the affair would be better dealt with by disciplinary proceedings at the General Medical Council. The decision brought wide protests from MPs and Attorney General Dominic Grieve asked for an explanation from Mr Starmer. Yesterday Mr Starmer, who is to step down later this month, told Mr Grieve: "These cases are by no means clear cut and a number of important issues arise. The law does not, in terms, expressly prohibit gender-specific abortions. Rather it prohibits any abortion carried out without two medical practitioners having formed a view, in good faith, that the health risks of continuing with a pregnancy outweigh those of termination. Some MPs say British law now offers abortion on demand in all but name. Pictured, a foetus in utero The only basis for a prosecution would be that the doctors failed to carry out a "sufficiently robust assessment" of the risks to their patient's health. But Mr Starmer said this would be difficult because of the "limited medical guidance" and practices such as the pre-signing of official forms. He added: "Whether the current arrangements should be altered or tightened is, of course, a matter for others." The Attorney General said he was "satisfied" with the DPP's reasoning. He said: "I understand that the question in these cases was not whether this was a gender specific abortion, but whether the doctors made a proper, considered medical judgment." Last month the head of the country's biggest abortion provider, Ann Furedi of BPAS, said gender abortion was legal and that women should be allowed to choose an abortion for any reason. Julian Brazier, Tory MP for Canterbury, said: "This is confirmation that we have abortion on demand. The Abortion Act provides no regulatory framework at all. It is sad that Britain is the only first-world country where you can legally have an abortion on the grounds of gender.