§ Mr. HopkinsTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what measures are being taken to reduce levels of teenage pregnancy in the UK. [172574]
§ Mr. Stephen Twigg[holding answer 13 May 2004]: The Government have set a target to reduce under 18 conceptions by 50 per cent. by 2010. To achieve this, each local authority has developed a local 10 year strategy, with reduction targets of between 40 and 60 per cent. Based on the best available international research, local strategies adopt a multifaceted approach, which includes a range of measures: to help young people resist peer pressure to have early sex; to improve the quality of sex and relationship education and access to effective contraceptive services; and to involve parents and the wider community. Research published in February 2003 by the Health Development Agency further endorses this approach.
§ Mr. HopkinsTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on the effect of the Teenage Pregnancy Strategy on the number of teenage pregnancies in the UK. [172576]
§ Mr. Stephen Twigg[holding answer 13 May 2004]: Provisional data for 2002 published on 26 February by the Office for National Statistics, shows that the conception rate among under 18-year-olds in England has fallen by 9.4 per cent. since 1998 (baseline year for Teenage Pregnancy Strategy).