§ Mr. D. E. Thomasasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the number of family planning clinics in Great Britain and in each regional health authority in England per 1,000 female population aged 14 to 44 years.
§ Dr. OwenBecause the size of family planning clinics varies, information about them in England has, since the introduction of the NHS family planning service on 1st April 1974, been recorded as the number of half day sessions provided. The population figures for NHS regions are available for the age group 15–44 years rather than 14–44 years. The average number of sessions per 1,000 female population aged 15–44 in England during the last nine months of 1974 were as follows:
Regional Health Authority Sessions per, 1000 female population aged 15–44 years during the period 1st April 1974 to 31st December 1974 Trent … … 13.1 East Anglia … … 12.6 North West Thames … … 18.4 South East Thames … … 18.8 Oxford … … 16.6 South Western … … 14.8 West Midlands … … 14.3 Mersey … … 11.7 North Western … … 13.2 I shall let the hon. Member have similar information for the other five regions in England as soon as it is complete.
The information in respect of Wales is given in the reply my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Wales gave to a similar Question from the hon. Member on 22nd July. I have no information about these services in Scotland.