§ Mr. WigleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how many sets of(a) twins, (b) triplets, (c) quadruplets, (d) quintuplets and (e) sextuplets were born in England and Wales in each year from 1990 to 1993; what was the total number of maternities in England and Wales in each year; and how many multiple births of each type in each year were conceived as a result of (i) in-vitro fertilisation, (ii) gamete infra-fallopian transfer and (iii) other forms of assisted conceptions.
§ Mr. SackvilleThe latest available figures for England and Wales are:
Type of birth 1990 1991 1992 Twins 7,934 8,160 8,314 Triplets 201 208 202 Quadruplets 10 10 8 Quintuplets — 2 1 Sextuplets — — — Total number of maternities with multiple births 8,145 8,380 8,525 Total maternities 701,030 693,857 683,854 Source: Office of Population Censuses and Surveys.
Information on multiple maternities is not yet available for 1993.
Information on the number of multiple births attributed to assist reproduction is not available. However, some information on multiple pregnancies for 1990 and 1991 is published in the first and second annual reports of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority and in earlier reports of the HFEA's predecessors, the interim licensing authority. Copies are available in the Library. 811W Information relating to 1992 will be published later this month in the next annual report of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority.