An MP has called for an "out of date" law concerning abortion to be reformed after it was used to prosecute a mother of three children.

Carla Foster was convicted of inducing an abortion outside the legal limit using pills at home and was sentenced to 28 months, 14 of which will be spent in custody.

Foster was between 32 and 34 weeks pregnant when she took medication acquired via the "pills by post" scheme introduced during the lockdown, Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court heard.

Abortion is legal up to 24 weeks of pregnancy, and the procedure must be carried out in a clinic after 10 weeks, BBC News reported.

Foster was initially charged with child destruction, but eventually pleaded guilty to a different offence under Section 58 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 which related to "administering drugs or using instruments to procure abortion".

The Argus: Caroline Noke has suggested the 1861 law concerning abortion should be looked into by ParliamentCaroline Noke has suggested the 1861 law concerning abortion should be looked into by Parliament (Image: Victoria Jones/PA Wire/PA Images)

However, the Commons Women and Equalities Committee chair Caroline Noke MP has criticised this ruling

'We are relying on legislation that is very out of date'

Speaking to BBC Radio 4's World Tonight programme Ms Noke stated that it should be decided by MPs whether they should be "relying on legislation that is centuries old".

She added: "This is not something that has been debated in any great detail for many years now.

"And cases like this, although tragic and thankfully very rare, throw into sharp relief that we are relying on legislation that is very out of date. It makes a case for Parliament to start looking at this issue in detail."

A spokesperson for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said cases like these were "exceptionally rare... complex and traumatic" but added they had "a duty" to ensure the laws were "properly considered and applied".

The CPS argued in court that Foster had been aware of abortion limits and had provided false information during a remote medical consultation.

Her defence said lockdown and minimising face-to-face appointments had changed access to healthcare, adding: "This will haunt her forever."

Foster went into labour on May 11, 2020 and the baby was confirmed dead 45 minutes later.

Sentencing, judge Mr Justice Edward Pepperall ignored calls from women's health organisations to hand down a non-custodial sentence or and said a suspended sentence might have been possible had a guilty plea been submitted earlier in the case.