Sir: Blaming the medical profession for the popularity of termination
of Down's syn- drome foetuses (Avoid handicaps. Kill babies' 8 July) seems a rather cheap way to avoid having to examine the morality of society in general. It does not seem to me to be in the babies' best interests to be born, as Mr Wilson implies in his last para- graph, just so that we can keep the numbers up to ensure adequate provision for those already living.
If my memory serves me right, Parlia- ment enacted the laws which allow for abortion whether the foetus has any defects or not. It is a bizarre moral stance to deride termination for foetuses with congenital defects without commenting on the destruction of normal ones. Mr Wilson states that he respects parents' right to choose but clearly is not in favour of termi- nation. If one does not agree with termina- tion for Down's syndrome, one does not agree with termination and, by extension, the concept of a woman's right to choose.
I'm boycotting French.' Whilst I accept that he may feel that having a Down's baby has been a worthwhile expe- rience, does he represent a majority of those so blessed? It is the public, their elected representatives and pressure groups who have decided whether these things could be done, not the medical profession.
Dr Andrew Lawson
Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, 369 Fulham Road, London SW10
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