HC Deb 08 June 1999 vol 332 cc447-8
2. Fiona Mactaggart (Slough)

What action he is taking to improve the sexual health of young women in Britain. [84997]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health (Mr. John Hutton)

My right hon. Friend the Minister for Public Health announced on 23 March that the Department of Health will, over the coming year, develop a comprehensive strategy on sexual health. We expect to be in a position to announce in the very near future the membership of an expert group to steer the work.

Fiona Mactaggart

Does my hon. Friend share my concern about sexual ill-health among young women and the rate of chlamydia—a non-symptomatic sexually transmitted infection, most common among women between 16 and 19—with 630 cases per 100,000 women? Is he aware that research suggests that an integrated specialist service can ensure that young women are more likely to be tested for such infections, to be diagnosed and to avoid problems such as infertility and ectopic pregnancy in later life? Will he do more to ensure that specialist services not only focus on reproductive health but deal with sexually transmitted infections in an integrated way?

Mr. Hutton

My hon. Friend is certainly right to draw attention to the risks posed by chlamydia. The rate of infection rose significantly in the last year for which we have figures, with an increase of nearly 21 per cent. Nearly 22,500 young women were diagnosed with chlamydia infection. That is why the Department is trying to promote better awareness. We mounted two public awareness campaigns, targeted primarily at younger women. A booklet was issued through 19 magazine in March and distributed through further education colleges. We are expecting two pilot schemes—one in the Wirral and one in Portsmouth—to begin operating a chlamydia screening service for young women in the summer. The Government are taking action and I certainly recognise the strength of my hon. Friend's argument.

Mr. John Bercow (Buckingham)

I accept that constructive sex education in schools can safeguard and even improve the sexual health of young women, but does the Minister agree that the recent suggestion from the hon. Member for Oxford, West and Abingdon (Dr. Harris) that sex education should be available in schools to children of seven is wrong and will rightly be viewed with alarm by millions of people throughout the country?

Mr. Hutton

I appreciate the hon. Gentleman's constructive comments about the importance of good health and sex education in schools. It is compulsory in secondary schools, and has been since 1994; at present, it is at the discretion of school governors in primary schools. I do not want to get involved in that argument today. It is important to recognise what good sex education can contribute. Of course it has to be appropriate to make a good contribution to promoting the sexual health of our young people. The Government are committed to that and we are taking the action that I have already outlined.

Ms Beverley Hughes (Stretford and Urmston)

Is my hon. Friend aware of recent research reported in the British Medical Journal, concluding that teenage sexual health in Britain is not only bad but getting worse, with increases in terminations among the under-19s and in birth rates? In the context of a fall in cases of sexually transmitted diseases generally, we have had an increase in cases not only of chlamydia but of gonorrhoea among the young. Does he agree that, although sex education and contraception are essential parts of the strategy, they are by no means sufficient by themselves and we must tackle issues of social exclusion, education, parental involvement and indeed poverty?

Mr. Hutton

I agree strongly. My hon. Friend made several sensible and useful points. It is very much the Government's intention to approach these issues in a joined-up way, considering all the services that are available to young women. It is extremely important to improve the sexual health of our young people. We have the highest rate of teenage pregnancy in western Europe and very high rates of sexual infection among young people. That is not acceptable. The Government will address the issues and we are determined to improve the sexual health of our young people.

Dr. Evan Harris (Oxford, West and Abingdon)

In view of that answer, does the Minister accept the need for urgency and does he understand the concerns of the British Medical Association, the Royal College of Nursing and the Sex Education Forum about the initiative that he announced a minute ago? We are halfway through this Parliament and we are still awaiting the joint report from the Department of Health and the Department for Education and Employment on personal health and sex education and the report of the social exclusion unit on teenage pregnancy. I urge the Minister to consider becoming involved in the debate on sex education so that we can have a system, such as those in Scandinavia and Holland, of early, clear sex education which has delivered the lowest rates of teenage abortion and under-16 conception in Europe, instead of the highest, which we have.

Mr. Hutton

I welcome the hon. Gentleman's interest and concern, but I shall not take any lectures from him about the speed of the Government's response. We have responded quickly and are putting together a comprehensive strategy to address such issues in the near future. It is a clear priority for the Government to tackle them as quickly as we can, but that must be done in the right way. We have the elements of the strategy in place and that will make a significant contribution to improving the sexual health of young people in this country, which is what we want to do.