§ Lord Kilmarnockasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether family planning clinics are to be cut by 25 per cent., and, if so, whether they consider that the service provided by general practitioners is as attractive to the consumer as family planning clinics, and what impact they expect on the rate of abortion, particularly among teenagers.
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Baroness Hooper)The level of local family planning provision is a matter for individual health authorities to determine in the light of local needs and priorities and other competing demands on resources. Government policy remains that family planning is an important preventative service which contributes to better 227WA maternal and child health and to the stability of family life. The Government continue to take the view that people should be free to choose their source of contraceptive advice, and that health authority family planning services complement, rather than duplicate, those which GPs provide. Choice is important to ensure that all those who wish to use this service can do so. Guidelines have been issued drawing attention to the need for separate, less formal, arrangements for young people.