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Treasury

Answer

Mr. Redmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the statistically most likely candidate for an abortion within the Trent region after the 24th week of pregnancy in the latest year for which figures are available in terms of (a) the age of the women, (b) marital status of the women, (c) the number of previous children of the women and (d) the grounds on which the abortion is performed. [40857] Mrs. Angela Knight: The statistically most likely candidate for an abortion for each of the variables listed is defined as the category with the highest recorded frequency of legal terminations. The percentages are based on all legal terminations performed in 1994, to women usually resident in the Trent health region. The categories with the highest frequencies found in each of the variables are as follows: age of the women: 25 to 29 age group comprised 50 per cent. (4) of all post 24th week gestation terminations; marital status: married women comprised 88 per cent. (7) of all post 24th week gestation terminations; number of previous children borne by the women: women with no previous (live and still born) children born to them, comprised 50 per cent. (4) of all post 24th week gestation terminations; legal ground under which the abortion was performed: statutory ground E alone comprised 88 per cent. (7) of all post 24th week gestation terminations. The definition of ground E is `that there is a substantial risk that if the child were born it would suffer from such physical or mental abnormalities as to be seriously handicapped'. Reference: 1994 Abortion Statistics, England and Wales, Series AB No. 21, HMSO publication 1996.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

40857; 282 c1114W;282 c1112W

Session

1995-96

Subjects

Abortion Statistics Trent Health Region