Have many women been talked out of having an abortion by the teaching of the Catholic Church? To the extent that that teaching is seen as coldly unsympathetic and judgemental, probably not. But what if the Church had a more merciful tone, standing alongside such a woman instead of against her, sharing her predicament?

That is the approach we associate with Pope Francis. It is also the approach taken in a remarkable joint statement by the Catholic bishops of England, Wales and Scotland issued on the 50th anniversary of the Abortion Act last autumn.