Nurses should be able to perform surgical abortions under a new interpretation of the law, experts said today.

An analysis of the existing Abortion Act and subsequent case law suggests a nurse could perform early operations as long as a doctor is in overall charge - but not necessarily present.

At the moment, nurses working as part of a team often administer medications to induce abortions.

But now, Vincent Argent, a consultant gynaecologist with legal training and Lin Pavey, a nurse and former bpas clinic manager in Brighton, argue that nurses should also be able to perform early surgical abortions.

Their analysis is published in the Journal of Family Planning and Reproductive Health Care.

They said: "Our analysis of the Abortion Act 1967 and the RCN v DHSS case shows that registered nurses and midwives could currently perform surgical abortions themselves as long as a medical practitioner is in overall charge even if the medical practitioner is not physically present."

In an accompanying commentary, Professor Gill Wakley said the analysis should be examined by the Department of Health, General Medical Council and the Nursing and Midwifery Council.

She said: "An expansion of the role of nurses could offer improvements in the quality and access of provision for early termination of pregnancy."

Madelaine Ward, a family planning nurse and former chairperson of the Abortion Law Reform Association (now Abortion Rights), said: "In so many areas of health provision, nurses have provided improvements in access to and quality of care.

"The time is now right for nurses to be trained to perform early surgical abortions under the supervision of a registered medical practitioner.

"I hope lobbying by the professions will now happen without delay."