§ Mr. Dempseyasked the Secretary of State for Scotland under what conditions under the National Health Service contraceptives are supplied to individuals; what is the minimum age at which they are supplied; whether they are available to both sexes; and what was the cost to the National Health Service in each of the last three years.
§ Mr. RossOral contraceptives are available under the Service on the prescription of family doctors, where the doctor considers that contraception is needed on medical grounds. Local health authorities can provide oral contraceptives and contraceptive appliances required on medical grounds, or can contribute to the cost of their provision by voluntary family planning clinics. No age limits are laid down. Contraceptives for males are not available under the Service.
The net cost—excluding dispensing fees and allowances, for which figures are not available—of oral contraceptives falling within the group most commonly prescribed by family doctors and supplied by chemists under the Service was approximately £35,000 for 1966, £38,000 for 1967 and £45,000 for 1968. Information is not available about expenditure on contraceptives met by local health authorities, but it is almost certainly small.