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Dept of Health

Answer

Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many abortion clinics have failed inspection by the National Care Standards Commission in the last 10 years; [163161] (2) how many doctors employed in abortion clinics have been the subject of General Medical Council disciplinary proceedings since 1990; [163162] (3) what safeguards are in place to ensure that abortions performed under section 1(1)(a) of the Abortion Act 1967 (as amended) take place within the 24-week time limit. [163164] Miss Melanie Johnson: No approved independent sector abortion clinics have been closed by the National Care Standards Commission (NCSC), through lack of compliance with the Private and Voluntary Healthcare (England) Regulations 2001 (the Regulations), since it came into being on 1 April 2002. Following the 2002-03 inspection, however, one clinic chose to close voluntarily in order to give the provider time to comply with the requirements set. Prior to 1 April 2002, abortion clinics were inspected separately by health authorities and the Department. In the last 10 years, one clinic had its registration under the Registered Homes Act 1984, and its approval under the Abortion Act 1967, withdrawn. The General Medical Council is an independent, statutory body. The Department does not hold information on doctors that have been the subject of general medical council disciplinary proceedings. Practitioners are legally required to send a notice of each termination performed in England to the chief medical officer. This notification must include details of the number of complete weeks of gestation and the grounds on which the abortion was carried out. Notifications are checked by the Department to ensure that the forms have been correctly completed. Statistics are published annually.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

422 c679-80W; 163161;163162;163164

Session

2003-04

Subjects

Disciplinary proceedings Abortion Clinics Doctors General Medical Council Inspections National Care Standards Commission Standards

Link

View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk