HC Deb 14 November 1988 vol 140 cc473-4W
Ms. Richardson

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how his Department controls the disposal of foetuses and foetal tissue following abortion procedures; and what information he has as to how the foetus which hon. Members were invited by the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children to view during the past Session was obtained.

Mrs. Currie

We have no information concerning the specific foetus to which the hon. Member refers; she might like to put her question to the society. Within the National Health Service, proper arrangements for the disposal of foetuses and foetal material are the responsibility of individual health authorities. In the private sector, places approved under the Abortion Act 1967 may not supply foetuses or foetal material to any organisation or institution without the express approval of the Secretary of State, nor change the method(s) of foetal disposal approved by the Secretary of State without prior consultation.

Back to