§ Mr. CohenTo ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what information he has for 1990, for each social class of partner or husband, on the percentages of mothers who breastfed(a) initially and (b) when their baby had reached the age of six weeks;
(2) what information he has about the percentage of women breastfeeding their babies (a) initially and (b) at six weeks in 1975, 1980, 1985 and 1990.
§ Mrs. Virginia BottomleyInformation for 1990 is unlikely to be published before next year. The table sets out the information requested for the years 1975, 1980 and 1985 in England and Wales.
England and Wales 1975 Percentage 1980 Percentage 1985 Percentage Birth 51 67 65 Six weeks 24 42 40 Source: OPCS surveys.
In the recently published Green Paper "The Health of the Nation" we have proposed that we should aim to increase the rates of breast feeding at birth by 75 per cent. and six weeks by 50 per cent. by the year 2000.