§ Mr. Shersbyasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what was the number of infants born with damage resulting from Rubella infection during pregnancy for each year back to 1945 before and since the introduction of immunisation against the disease.
§ Mr. Moyle,pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 22nd November 1976: Vol. 919, c. 999–1000], circulated the following information:
Information is not available in the form requested. Under the National Congenital Rubella Surveillance Programme, introduced in 1971, the number of cases reported in each year by consultant paediatricians and community physicians has been as follows—the figures for 1971–72 include a backlog of cases:
1971–72 134 1972–73 94 1973–74 70 1974–75 69 1975–76 57 (returns not yet complete). The year of birth for the children in these reports was as follows:
1970 or earlier 150 1971 60 1972 64 1973 60 1974 23 1975 9 Not yet known 58 However, causation is not easy to establish and a further 99 causes have ben reported from a large special centre, which suggests some degree of underreporting.