§ Mr. Bishopasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the number of registered midwives in Great Britain; how many are men and women, respectively; and, in view of the policy of Her Majesty's Government about sex discrimination, what action he is taking to allow men to enter the profession.
§ Mr. AlisonThe figure is 100,131, of whom 24,392 are practising. All are women, as, under the provisions of the Midwives Act 1951, men cannot become certified midwives. We do not at present have any proposals to change this situation.