JOHN SMEATON, DIRECTOR OF SPUC: advertising

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Friday, 10 April 2009

Archbishop condemns plan to advertise abortion on TV

When I was going into church for a Good Friday service earlier today, a delighted fellow-parishioner told me about a statement by the archbishop-elect of Westminster on proposals to advertise abortion and birth control on television. I've told the media that SPUC warmly welcomes Most Rev Vincent Nichols' initiative. I'm sure many Catholics and non-Catholics will respond to his call to oppose ads for abortion and condoms on TV.

About Me

I became involved in SPUC after graduating, when I established a branch in south London in 1974. I have worked full-time for SPUC for 42 years. I became chief executive of SPUC in the UK in 1996, having been general secretary since 1978. I was elected vice-president of International Right to Life Federation in 2005. At UN conferences in Cairo, Copenhagen, Beijing, Istanbul and Rome, I helped coordinate more than 150 pro-life/pro-family groups resulting in pro-life victories in Cairo, Istanbul and Rome. I was educated at Salesian College, London, before going to Oxford where I graduated in English Language and Literature. I qualified as a teacher, becoming head of English at a secondary school. I am married to Josephine. We have a grown-up family and we live in north London.