HC Deb 23 January 1990 vol 165 cc663-4W
41. Mrs. Mahon

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement about the family planning service.

55. Mr. Steinberg

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement about the family planning services.

76. Mrs. Wise

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement about the family planning services.

113. Ms. Gordon

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement about the family planning services.

Mrs. Virginia Bottomley

The Government regard family planning as an important preventive service that contributes to maternal and child health and to the stability of family life. The emphasis of family planning services is on enabling people to plan and space their families as they would wish, with the consequent beneficial effects on health and the quality of life.

The day-to-day management of family planning services is a matter for individual health authorities since they can best judge local circumstances and priorities. Planning guidelines for 1989–91, issued in July 1988, asked authorities to ensure that full use is made of family planning services as a resource in combating AIDS and to strike a balance between services provided by specialist clinics and those provided by GPs.