§ Mrs. Iris RobinsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what means he used to find out what people think of the Government's proposals for establishing stand-alone, midwife-led maternity units. [144777]
§ Angela SmithIn line with my predecessor's commitment, 1 issued a consultation document on Community Midwifery Units on 30 June 2003.
As part of the consultation process, advertisements were placed in the main regional newspapers. The consultation document was made available on my Department's website and was also issued to a wide range of organisations and individuals. In addition, my Department commissioned the Community Development and Health Network to undertake a series of focus groups across Northern Ireland. These focus groups were specifically targeted to obtain responses from both potential service users and those groups least likely to respond to government consultations.
The consultation period closed on 31 October. Officials are now in the process of drawing together an analysis of the responses received.