HC Deb 12 November 1980 vol 992 cc258-60W
Mrs Dunwoody

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many abortions were performed at 20 to 23 weeks' gestation and 24 weeks' and over gestation for the years 1978 and 1979; on what grounds these were performed; what ages were the women; how many were performed in the National Health Service; and how many were performed in approved places.

Sir George Young

Details are as follows:

NUMBERS AND PERCENTAGES OF LEGAL ABORTIONS, ALL DURATIONS OF GESTATION AND TOTALS BY CATEGORY OF PREMISES, STATUTORY GROUNDS AND AGE OF WOMEN RESIDENTS OF ENGLAND AND WALES, 1978 AND 1979
1978 1979
20–23 weeks 24 and over Total (all gestations) 20–23 weeks 24 and over Total (all gestations)
Number Per cent. Number Per cent. Number Per cent. Number Per cent. Number Per cent. Number Per cent.
Total … … 1,249 1.12 261 0.23 111,851 100 1,486 1.23 281 0.23 120,611 100
Category of premises
NHS premises … … 571 1.04 134 0.24 55,040 100 535 0.96 120 0.22 55,558 100
Approved premises … 678 1.19 127 0.22 56,811 100 951 1.46 161 0.25 65,053 100
Statutory grounds*
1 (with others) … … 9 1.33 7 1.03 679 100 11 1.86 9 1.52 592 100
2 … … … … 891 0.96 180 0.19 92,949 100 1,153 1.13 204 0.20 102,100 100
3 (with others except 1) … 126 0.79 28 0.18 15,855 100 103 0.65 20 0.13 15,575 100
4 (with 2) … … … 220 9.34 43 1.83 2,356 100 218 10.13 44 2.05 2,151 100
5 and 6 … … … 3 25.00 3 25.00 12 100 1 7.69 4 30.77 13 100
Age of women
Under 15 … … … 26 3.08 7 0.83 844 100 27 3.21 5 0.59 841 100
15 … … … … 47 1.92 13 0.53 2,454 100 62 2.30 6 0.22 2,693 100
16–19 … … … 390 1.48 73 0.28 26,363 100 517 1.77 91 0.31 29,192 100
20–24 … … … 324 1.21 67 0.25 26,693 100 409 1.38 89 0.30 29,647 100
25–29 … … … 199 1.00 38 0.19 19,812 100 198 0.96 37 0.18 20,655 100
30–34 … … … 102 0.59 29 0.17 17,285 100 128 0.70 19 0.10 18,348 100
35–39 … … … 68 0.61 20 0.18 11,153 100 67 0.56 21 0.17 12,012 100
40–44 … … … 61 1.24 8 0.16 4,918 100 57 1.15 7 0.14 4,965 100
45 and over … … 12 2.44 0 0.00 492 100 9 1.73 3 0.58 519 100
Not stated age … … 20 1.09 6 0.33 1,837 100 12 0.69 3 0.17 1,739 100
Gestation period is calculated as the number of completed weeks between last menstrual period and date of operation.
In both 1978 and 1979 3.5 per cent. of abortions do not have a stated gestation period. These are included only in the total columns above.
Similar figures are not available for non-residents of England and Wales.
* Grounds as listed in Schedule 2 of the Abortion Regulations 1968:
1. Risk to life of woman.
2. Risk of injury to physical or mental health of woman.
3. Risk of injury to physical or mental health of existing child(ren).
4. Substantial risk of child being born abnormal.
5. In emergency—to save life of woman.
6. In emergency—to prevent grave permanent injury to physical or mental health of woman.